Belagavi
The BJP in city is in the dock, with the State Government setting up one investigation after another on charges of corruption and irregularities in development works, especially those involving South MLA Abhay Patil.
Already an investigation into the sub-standard works by Smart City Limited has been initiated. Even the ruling BJP members in Belagavi City Corporation had made allegations against the shoddy works during a council meeting.
A probe has been initiated into the alleged Rs 100 crore scam of the manual auction of the sites of Belagavi Urban Development Authority (BUDA), which was held in March 2022. Another ongoing probe is regarding permitting the Jai Kisan wholesale vegetable market, a private market to function, despite land-related litigations.
Recently added probes are an investigation into the illegal appointment of 138 civic workers by the BCC around 11 months ago. Due to irregularities in appointments, the said civic workers haven’t received salaries so far. The Urban Development Department has sought details of the expenditure.
Most of the investigations initiated are said to be projects where BJP MLA Abhay Patil is involved. For the past two months, public works minister Satish Jarkiholi has been openly making corruption charges against Abhay Patil. In most cases, the BJP is on the back foot and hesitating to come out openly with clarifications regarding all these charges.
We will bring out the scams of MLA Abhay Patil through proper investigation. The truth should come out before people. In some cases, high-level investigations are required. They involve corruption at the top level. They require a thorough investigation, said Satish Jarkiholi. Meanwhile, MLA Abhay Patil, speaking to media persons here, said, I am not scared of these investigations. Let them happen. However, they should not be politically motivated.
