Congress alleges graft in settling Covid medical bills

CHIKKAMAGALURU: Functionaries of the Congress in Chikkamagaluru on Thursday alleged that BJP leaders, and officials in the government, were demanding bribes to clear bills of contractors who supplied medical equipment when the state was battling Covid.
The charges levelled by the Congress leaders come on the back of a complaint made by a Hubballi-based Basavar Amaragol, who had supplied medical equipment to Mudigere and Kadur taluks in 2021. Amaragol has submitted a mercy petition to the President seeking permission to commit suicide, citing pending bills.
Amaragol had reportedly supplied medical equipment worth Rs 84 lakh, and he has alleged that a few officials were demanding as much as 30% to 40% of the amount in bribes to settle his dues.
Chikkamagaluru District Congress Committee president Amshumanth said that the issue had been brought to the attention of chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, but the charges were yet to be probed. The predicament that Amaragol finds himself in is illustrative of the rampancy of corruption in Karnataka, said Amshumanth.
The Congress functionary also questioned the silence of Union minister of state for agriculture, and Udupi-Chikkamagaluru MP Shobha Karandhlaje, and BJP general secretary CT Ravi in the scam. Amshumanth urged the BJP government in the state to order a probe to ascertain the veracity of the allegations.