BENGALURU: With the Bengaluru Teachers’ Constituency election to the Legislative Council scheduled for Friday, Leader of the Opposition in the Council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy on Thursday accused Congress candidate Puttanna of distributing gift coupons worth up to Rs 15,000, flasks, tiffin boxes and cash to influence voters.
A delegation led by Narayanaswamy and NDA candidate A P Ranganath of the JD(S) submitted a complaint to the election authorities in Bengaluru, seeking action against 17 Block Education Officers (BEOs) and other education department officials allegedly involved in the distribution.
Addressing the media after lodging the complaint, Narayanaswamy alleged that gift coupons were being distributed in the name of Dasara greetings and could be redeemed at Lulu Mall. He claimed that the coupons carried numbers indicating values of Rs 5,000, Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000.
"Gift coupons are being distributed through BEOs, and voters are allegedly being lured with money and gifts. Is this the kind of politics through which one wants to become an MLC?" he asked, demanding that FIRs be registered against officials found to be involved.
Narayanaswamy alleged that some BEOs and Deputy Directors of Public Instruction had visited Puttanna’s residence before reporting to their offices. He claimed that the distribution of gift coupons had reinforced his earlier allegations about the officials’ involvement in the election campaign.
He also alleged that cash had been distributed in envelopes to two people from the Devanahalli region, identified as Muniraju and Bidalapura, followed by the distribution of tiffin boxes.
Accusing the Congress government of misusing its administrative machinery to influence the election, Narayanaswamy alleged that voters were being threatened with consequences if they did not support the ruling party.
He said the NDA’s legal team was monitoring the activities of the officials concerned and that photographs and other documents would be released as evidence. He urged the Chief Electoral Officer to examine the complaint and initiate action against those found guilty.
JD(S) leader and former MLC Srikante Gowda also accused the government of using teachers and officials for electoral purposes and urged the election authorities to investigate the alleged irregularities.
Ranganath said complaints had already been submitted to the Regional Commissioner and election authorities. However, he alleged that instructions had been issued to 17 BEOs to continue distributing gift coupons on Thursday.
Appealing to teachers to vote for him as their first preference, Ranganath said he had lost the previous election by a narrow margin and sought an opportunity to represent them for six years. He also criticised the Congress government for failing to fulfil its promise of implementing the Old Pension Scheme.
Ranganath challenged Puttanna to clarify his future electoral plans, including whether he intended to contest again from Rajajinagar.
Puttanna did not respond to this reporter's calls seeking his reaction to the allegations.
