Karnataka: Siddaramaiah alleges Rs 2,000 crore graft in purchase of medical equipment during Covid

CM says the government will take action once the Justice John Michael D’Cunha Commission submits its report.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah | PTI Chief Minister Siddaramaiah | PTI

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday targeted the previous Yediyurappa government, alleging that a corruption of over Rs 2,000 crore had taken place in the purchase of medical equipment during the Covid-19 period.

Siddaramaiah said the government will take action once the Justice John Michael D’Cunha Commission formed to probe the allegations submits its report.

"During the Corona period, there was a scam of more than Rs 2,000 crores. There was a lot of corruption in the purchase of healthcare materials, a commission headed by retired Justice Michael Cunha was formed, but the report is not yet in hand,” he said, addressing a press conference in Bellari.

“Let the report of the Commission come, then a decision will be taken in the cabinet”.

Siddaramaiah further noted that as the Leader of the Opposition, he had raised the issue in the state assembly.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, state minister Dinesh Gundu Rao claimed that the Commission has clearly indicted Yediyurappa and former health minister B. Sriramulu.

“There are many other aspects of the report which I don't want to talk about. I can say whatever is there in the report is true. It clearly shows that during crisis of Covid, the BJP government was using it to loot the state and the allegations we were talking about then have come true,"  Rao was quoted as saying by ANI.

Rao dismissed the BJP’s allegations of “political vendetta” and said the Commission had taken more than one and a half years to come up with the report.

“This is not an overnight decision. It has nothing to do with us. It's a serious allegation with clear evidences given of how it was done. He can fight it out legally,” he added.

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