BENGALURU/DAVANAGERE: Tuesday posed further embarrassment for the BJP over its graft-accused MLA from Channagiri in Davanagere district, Madal Virupakshappa, who after five days resurfaced when Karnataka High Court granted him ad-interim anticipatory bail and returned to his constituency to a rousing welcome and celebrations by his followers. A red-faced BJP — which was already rattled by the Lokayukta raid in the run-up to the polls — warned him against such celebrations in the face of corruption charges likely to dent the party’s image.
The Lokayukta raid on March 2 in Bengaluru found Rs 8 crore in the office of his son, Prashanth Madal, Chief Accounts Officer at Bangalore Water Supply & Sewerage Board (BWSSB). While anxieties over the impending impact of the corruption charge ran high, Virupakshappa anticipated his expulsion from the party while remaining defiant, claiming that the Rs 8 crore found by the Lokayukta police rightfully belonged to him.
“The money seized by Lokayukta sleuths is accounted money and we are going to give proper evidence for all the money and are going to get it back from them,” he told reporters at his Channakeshavapura residence in Channagiri.
‘Will submit all accounts for probe’
“The money is from our large arecanut groves, arecanut mandi, stone crushers and other businesses that our family runs,” he said. He said all accounts would be submitted for investigation, and expressed confidence that he would come clean of the charges. He said although he had not received any notice from the Lokayukta sleuths, he would be appearing for the investigations within 48 hours.
Under the assumption that a decision to expel him from the party was already taken, Virupakshappa said he welcomed it and would rejoin the party after getting a clean chit.
But party sources said no such decision was taken, and it would be left to the party’s central leaders to decide on expulsion as Virupakshappa is a sitting MLA.
BJP Davanagere district president Veeresh Hanagawadi said a decision to expel a member from the BJP’s primary membership is taken by the BJP’s disciplinary committee, which issues a proper notice for the accused’s version. But that had not happened in this case. “He (Virupakshappa) might have given the reaction of being expelled as he is passing through a traumatic situation,” Hanagawadi said.
Virupakshappa, who resigned as Chairman of Karnataka Soaps & Detergents Limited (KSDL) and remained incommunicado after his son Prashanth was caught red-handed while allegedly accepting a Rs 40 lakh bribe from an agency to favour a tender to supply chemical oil to KSDL, and had moved the court seeking anticipatory bail.