K’taka: 19 acres of govt land given for free for trust run by Kharge’s family, says BJP

Bengaluru: Karnataka BJP has levelled serious allegations against AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge’s family that the Congress government had allotted 19 acres of land for free to International Institute of Pali, Sanskrit and Comparative Philosophy in Kalaburagi, run by the Siddhartha Vihara Trust managed by the Kharge family.

Lahar Singh Siroya, BJP Rajya Sabha Member, taking to X, stated: “The Siddhartha Vihara Trust managed by the Mallikarjuna Kharge family. Trustees of the Siddhartha trust include Shri Kharge’s wife, son-in-law and two sons.”

“The secretary of the Pali Institute is Radhakrishna, the son-in-law of Kharge and sitting Kalaburagi Congress MP. Recently, it came to light that the Siddhartha Vihara Trust was granted five acres of civic amenities land in the aerospace park, near Bengaluru,” he added.

“In March 2014, the CM Siddaramaiah-led Congress government gave 16 acres of government land on lease for 30 years to the Pali Institute. In a couple of years additional land of three acres was added to the 16-acre leased property. And finally, in March 2017, all 19 acres were transferred free of cost to the Kharge family-run institute by CM Siddaramaiah-led Congress government. An important fact is Kharge’s son, Priyank Kharge, was a Cabinet Minister in the then Karnataka government like he is now, when the land was granted,” Lahar Singh charged.

“I demand that this land transfer of 19 acres, like the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) land grant of 5 acres, should be probed by an independent agency. I have been abused and personally targeted for pointing out the alleged misuse of power and nepotism of the Kharge family in Karnataka,” he went on.

“But, if the Kharge family believes in the principles of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar and Lord Gautama Siddhartha, they should themselves seek a probe,” Lahar Singh demanded.

“Another pertinent question to ask in this context is, did the CM Siddaramaiah government come under pressure from Kharge to grant parcels of land to their private trust or was the Congress government in Karnataka trying to please Kharge?” Lahar Singh questioned.

IANS

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