BENGALURU: BJP MLAs led by former deputy CM CN Ashwathnarayana have filed a complaint with Karnataka Lokayukta seeking an investigation into the alleged scam in procurement of smart meters by the Energy Department.
In the complaint, they alleged that Energy Minister KJ George and Additional Chief Secretary Gaurav Gupta, former BESCOM MD Mahantesh Bilagi and other officials ensured that Rajashree Electricals Private Limited bagged the tender for supply of smart meters. There is a need to investigate the nexus between George and the private company, the BJP leaders stated.
The Ministry of Finance has mandated that procurement of material worth more than Rs 200 crore should be done through a global tendering process, but this has not been followed while inviting tenders for smart meters, they said.
The BJP MLAs pointed out that the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission provides an opportunity to consumers to either choose smart meters or normal ones. But the board of directors made installation of smart meters mandatory.
The tender has been estimated at Rs 997 crore as against Rs 4,985 crore, which was done deliberately to ensure that the work order is given to this company. The board of directors, instead of calculating the total contract value, have calculated only the annual tender value, they alleged.
The company collaborated with BCITS Private Limited just to participate in the tendering process. Interestingly, BCITS Private Limited is a blacklisted company and the board of directors are aware of it, the BJP leaders alleged.