No dearth of 'nataka' in Karnataka politics

Major political developments that took place in Karnataka included everything from elections to cases of graft

LS polls: NDA surges ahead- The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) bagged 19 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka this past June. The BJP contested 25 segments and won 17 while JD(S) contested three and won two as Congress managed nine seats.

Congress secured only two seats in the Old Mysuru region where their dominance had earned them power in the state just a year prior. The NDA had managed to cobble together an alliance of Lingayats and Vokkaligas, the two most politically dominant castes in Karnataka.

Prajwal case shocks nation: From April 22 to 25, pen drives containing nearly 3,000 videos of then JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna allegedly raping scores of women flooded Hassan. It is to be noted that on April 26, the Hassan Lok Sabha seat went to polls. Prajwal contested against Congressman Shreyas Patel who won. On April 27, Prajwal fled to Germany and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe was ordered. Prajwal’s father HD Revanna was also accused of rape. On May 31, Prajwal returned to Bengaluru upon which he was arrested. His case is being heard in the Karnataka High Court.

Valmiki Corpn scam: Nagendra out- Scheduled Tribe Welfare Minister B Nagendra quit from the Cabinet in June due to his alleged role in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation Limited (KMVSTDCL) illegal money transfer scam. He was charged by the Enforcement Directorate later, imprisoned and then bailed out.

The scam came to light on May 26 when KMVSTDCL superintendent P Chandrashekharan (48) died by suicide and in his death note spoke of siphoning away of Rs 187 crore of the Corporation’s money to an unauthorized bank account among other irregularities. A special Investigation Team (SIT) has since recovered tens of crores of rupees and two sports cars allegedly bought with the stolen funds.

MUDA case: CM feels heat- In July, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife BM Parvati was named in the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) illegal site allotment scam. About 3.16 acres of land in Kesare village on the outskirts of Mysuru city was allegedly acquired under suspicious circumstances by Parvati. The scam is rooted in the 2020 BJP State government 50:50 policy of compensating people with half the amount of land lost.

Many are alleged t o have received land of far greater value than what they lost, costing MUDA hundreds of crores. Siddaramaiah’s brother-in-law BM Mallikarjunaswamy acquired the site in 2004 and made a gift deed of it to his sister Parvati in 2010. In 2014, Parvati wrote to MUDA claiming they had acquired her land illegally and demanded relief. In 2022, Parvati received 14 alternative sites allegedly of higher value than lost land. She returned the sites under pressure in September.

By-polls: Congress wins them all

In November, the Congress won all three Assembly by-elections namely Sandur in Ballari district, Shiggaon in Haveri district and Channapatna in Ramanagar district. In Channapatna, Congress candidate CP Yogeshwar defeated JD(S) man Nikhil Kumaraswamy by 25,413 votes. Former CM Basavaraj Bommai’s pocket borough slipped out of his hands as his son Bharat lost Shiggaon to Congressman Yasir Ahmed Khan Pathan by 13,448 votes. Congress also retained their stronghold Sandur as Annapoorna defeated BJP candidate Bangaru Hanumanthu by 9,649 votes.