by Political Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

BANGALORE, APR 13: EMBOLDEND by the heat faced by BJP’s sitting MP from Davangere, who has been renominated as the party candidate, over the alleged misuse of funds under the MPLAD (member of parliament local area development) Scheme, Karnataka JD(S) has demanded the Election Commission to take similar action against BJP’s Uttara Kannada candidate and sitting MP, Anant Kumar Hegde.

JD(S) state spokesman and general secretary Y S V Datta, MLC, claimed that Hegde had allegedly sanctioned Rs 5 lakh from the MPLAD scheme to a ``non-existent’’  Swami Vivekananda Trust, which was nothing but a front for construction of a BJP office in Khanapura city of Belgaum district.  The entire process of sanctioning funds under the MPLAD scheme and the approval for grant of two and half gunta of land out of the 11 gunta reserved for a public park was done in a ``hasty and fraudulent’’ manner, Datta said pointing out that the Khanapur BJP MLA Prahlad K Remani, the then Town Panchayat administrator and tahsildar as well as state public works  minister C M Udasi and Hegde were involved in the scandal.

Releasing documents of the entire fraudulent deal, Datta said Remani, who was also the Khanapur taluk BJP president, had written to Udasi on September 15, 2006 for grant of five guntas of land for construction of a party office building and the minister had directed the Khanapur town panchayat administrator to grant the land at concessional rates on the same day. Within a matter of three days, the administrator and tahsildar of Khanapur recommended to the Belgaum deputy commissioner on September 19 that the town panchayat had unanimously approved the grant of two and half gunta of land from out of the 11 guntas reserved for a public park.

When the Belgaum deputy commissioner’s office returned the file to the administrator of Khanapur town panchayat on October 6, 2006, by pointing out the planning director’s observation that land reserved for a public purpose like a public park could not be allotted for construction of BJP office, the proposal was changed and the name of the beneficiary was mentioned at Swami Vivekananda Trust. A case has been registered against the grant of land for the Trust by Arun Dattatreya on March 7 this year under No. BC 72/09, which pending before Khanapur civil court.

The JD(S) leader said he came to know about the entire incident after the filing of nomination papers for Uttara Kannada which comes under the second phase for polling on April 30 and would be submitting all the relevant documents before the state electoral officer before the closure of the deadline for withdrawal of nominations at 3 pm on Monday with a demand for rejection of Hegde’s nomination papers as he is guilty of violation of model code of conduct, People’s Representation Act and the guidelines under the MPLAD scheme, the same offences under which BJP’s Davangere candidate and sitting MP G M Siddesh is accused of.

"We are furnishing all documents to the Election Commission in Delhi also,’’ he said pointing out that the party was exploring all legal avenues to fight the misuse of office and power by the ruling BJP in the state.

Incidentally, Hegde had attracted widespread public criticism for openly campaigning that he does not want the votes of Muslims and other minority communities and would be happy if the majority Hindu community voted for him. The Congress and JD(S) leaders had lodged written complaints against him with the Election Commission, which is yet to be disposed of.

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