BANGALORE: Opposition leader M Udayshankar on Thursday demanded Mayor Sharadamma to disqualify Vasanthnagar councillor Katta Jagadish for not attending three consecutive Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) council meetings.
Jagadish, who is facing corruption charges in the multi-crore Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) scam, was imprisoned on August 8. Udayshankar said Jagadish had written a letter to the Mayor on August 24, stating judicial custody as the reason for not attending the meeting. However, the letter was applicable only for the council meeting held on August 29. Also, Jagadish missed three council meetings consecutively on September 29, October 29, and November 30. As per Section 26(2)(c), Karnataka Muncipal Act 1976, Jagadish can be disqualified from the council.
Udayshankar said that if the elected representative is in judicial custody and submits required certificates to the Mayor, there is a provision to grant them six months’ leave. But Jagadish failed to submit the documents and a letter for absence. “I have personally examined the council attendance register. They have marked him as absent. If Jagadish had given a leave letter, then there was no need to mention absent. We therefore demand Mayor to disqualify him,” he added.
Dalit forum seeks CBI probe
Karnataka Rajya Dalita Sangharsha Samithi (KRDSS) has condemned the transfer of BBMP commissioner H Siddaiah and demanded a CIB probe into Rs 1,539 crore scam.
Speaking to reporters, Lakshminarayan Nagavara, state convenor, KRDSS, said the transfer of Siddaiah is a ploy to end the investigation of the scam. “We demand that he be reinstated. We also want CBI to handle the probe,” he said.
Samithi plans to stage a protest in front of Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda’s residence on December 3 to protest against the multi-crore scam and transfer of the commissioner.