Rajeev Chandrasekhar urges Lokayukta on corruption charges

Bengaluru: Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrashekhar on Friday asked the Karnataka Lokayukta to initiate suo motu proceedings and conduct investigation into the allegations made by former Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa regarding corruption in awarding steel flyover contract. 

He urged the Karnataka Lokayukta to initiate suo motu proceedings and investigate into the allegations made by Yeddyurappa into the corruption, based on evidence found in a diary implicating Congress MLC K Govindraju involving gratification amounting to 150 crores for the steel flyover, he said in a press release here.

The diary, which details the illegal transactions has significant evidentiary value in a criminal prosecution as it was seized from a MLC, he said. 

The BJP MP also said he had written a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in June 2016 about the non-transparent way the project was getting pushed. 

The Rs 1,761 crore project of BDA is to construct a 6.72 km long, six-lane steel flyover between Basaveshwara Circle and Hebbal to decongest traffic. 

However, the project faced opposition as it allegedly involved felling of over 800 trees. Farmers too had opposed the project. 

The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal had restrained the Bengaluru Development Authority from proceeding with the project.