From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Mar 6: Congress leader and former opposition leader in the Karnataka Legislative Council V S Ugrappa has demanded derecognition of BJP by the Election Commission of India taking cognizance of the admission made by the former minister and independent MLA B Sriramulu that he and his business associate, mining baron G Janardhana Reddy, gave Rs 260 crore to organise the party and win the Assembly elections in 2008.

Ugrappa submitted a memorandum to the State Chief Electoral Officer C S Suranjana and contended that Sriramulu’s open admission at a press conference in Gadag on March 3 that he had paid Rs 200 crore to BJP leaders as election expenses besides Rs 10 crore a month for six months at the request of former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa.

''None of the BJP leaders have denied this (Sriramulu’s claim) indicating that they had received funds," he said.

The Congress said the Election Commission had fixed a maximum expenditure of Rs 10 lakh each for Lok Sabha election candidates and only Rs 24 crore was enough for all the 224 candidates of the BJP, who contested the elections. When that was the fact, why did Sriramulu pay a total of Rs 260 crore?

Ugrappa claimed that the money was nothing but corruption and an electoral offence
under IPC and Income Tax rules.

He also urged the Election Commission to declare the election of all the BJP MLAs as null and void in view of the corrupt practice by the ruling party in the 2008 elections.

The Congress leader demanded Sriramulu and BJP leaders to disclose whether the payments were made in cheque or cash and who received it along with details of whether accounts had been maintained and taxes paid.

He asked whether the authorities had been informed about the payments, as required under the rules.