BENGALURU: AT a time when the contractors’ association has set a deadline of March 5 for the State Government to clear their pending bills, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday blamed the previous BJP government for the not clearing the dues.When reporters asked him about the deadline set by the contractors’ association, the CM stated that it was the previous BJP government that had not cleared the dues. “The dues are huge because they (BJP) did not pay them,” the CM said.
The BJP, however, attacked the State Government on the issue of pending bills to contractors. Karnataka BJP president BY Vijayendra said that since the Congress came to power in the state in 2023, the State Government has turned Karnataka into a den of corruption. “There is rampant corruption in departments like urban development, housing, and excise. The pending bills exceed Rs 37,370 crore. The contractors are making corruption allegations against the Congress government... it is revealing the true face of the State Government,” Vijayendra said. “To pay black money to your high command, you have made the lives of contractors miserable. Is the state treasury empty?” he added.
Vijayendra also said that the government had promised to pay the contractors their dues in April 2025. “No money has been paid. Now, contractors are expressing displeasure with the State Government. This is the achievement of this government. It has made the
state bankrupt by giving the government into the hands of commission agents,” he said, adding that the state has witnessed no development.