Former legislator and BJP State spokesperson Rajkumar Patil Telkur demanded a CBI inquiry in an alleged cheating in the competitive examination conducted by the Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA) for recruitment to various posts last week.
Addressing a press conference in Kalaburagi on Tuesday, Mr. Telkur said that several candidates were arrested for using Bluetooth in the examination, questions are being raised as to how such a huge scam took place under the nose of the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge in his own district. Mr. Priyank should break his silence on the alleged scam.
The previous BJP government took series action against those involved in PSI recruitment scam in 2022, the candidates appeared for examinations, the government officials involved in the scam and the police officials including an IPS rank officer was taken into the custody, said Mr. Telkur, irked over the nonchalant attitude of the State government in the scam, and questioned whether the State government and the Home Minister were incompetent.
In order to protect the kingpin and officials and politicians involved in the scam, the State government is trying to close the case by arresting the candidates who appeared for examinations using Bluetooth devices. The arrest of candidates was just the tip of the iceberg and it was possible to go to the roots of the scam only through CBI inquiry, Mr. Telkur said.
The police force has become a puppet in the hands of the State government. The State government and Congress leaders are using them as per their wish, Mr. Telkur alleged.
He said the Siddramaiah-led government had failed to tackle the drought situation in the State. The State BJP would launch a drought study tour to assess the drought situation and crop damage across the State. A team led by BJP leader B.Y. Vijayendra would tour parts of Kalyana Karnataka districts, including Kalaburagi and Bidar by November first week. The drought study report will be submitted to the Governor and also to the Central government, he added.
