BENGALURU: With Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) contractors slamming the State Government over pending dues, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Thursday said a conspiracy was being hatched against him. This comes days after the BBMP contractors accused Shivakumar of demanding a 10 to 15% commission to clear pending bills.
“I know who is behind sending the contractors to Delhi and making them address the media… But we (Congress government) are committed to giving justice to those contractors who have taken up the works and completed them honestly,” he told reporters here, adding that an inquiry has been ordered to look into the issue. “Let them (contractors) prove the work they have done. Those who have done the work honestly, the government will ensure justice to them,” the DyCM elaborated.
The Congress government has constituted four teams to look into the BBMP works taken up in the city over the last four years. Ministers support DKS Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy too said that the pending dues will be released only after the probe teams investigate and submit their report. “There is no truth in the allegations (against Shivakumar).
But I urge the government that action should be taken at the earliest to release the dues to contractors,” he said. Hitting out at the previous BJP government, Rural Development Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge, said, “The contractors came to me also. But I clarified that the money will be released as per law. Don’t we have to verify the works before releasing the bills? The BJP when in power might have taken money to clear the bills and hence are now batting in favour of the contractors.”
ALLEGATION AGAINST DKS FALSE, SAYS LAW MINISTER
Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil denied the contractors’ charges that the DyCM had asked for a commission to clear bills. “There were allegations that works were not implemented, hence the panels were set up. The minister has replied. Since the implementation of the five guarantees has been successful, these false allegations are cropping up,” he remarked.
