Valmiki Corporation scam: Ex-minister Nagendra, MLA Daddal remain under house arrest

Bengaluru:  The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday continued the raids at the houses of former minister B Nagendra and Congress MLA Basanagouda Daddal in Bengaluru and Raichur.

The raids follow ongoing investigations into the multi-crore scam in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation, when Nagendra was the schedule tribes welfare minister. He resigned in June.

The ED has concluded the searches at more than eight locations. The searches at the houses Nagendra’s and Daddal in Bengaluru are still going on. Since Wednesday morning, the ED has barred both the Congress leaders from stepping out of their homes.

The ED officials also continued the raid at the Corporation’s head office in Vasanthnagar until Thursday evening and scrutinised various documents. It’s not clear what was seized from the premises. 

On Thursday, officials once again detained Harish, a close aide of Nagendra, and took him to the ED’s office in Shantinagar. Officials detained Karthik, a close aide of Daddal, for questioning. 

On Wednesday, the ED officials visited three former employees of the Union Bank of India.

While the exact reason behind Wednesday’s raids is unclear, it is noteworthy that two complaints were lodged at the ED seeking a probe into the scam.

What’s the scam? 

The scam in the Corporation surfaced after its accounts superintendent Chandrashekhar, died by suicide in Shivamogga on May 26. He left behind a death note, naming some Corporation officials and the “minister”. 

On February 19, the Corporation’s account was “mysteriously” moved from the Union Bank of India’s Vasanthnagar branch to MG Road. Subsequently, Rs 187.33 crore was deposited into the account in five transactions. 

Out of Rs 187.33 crore, Rs 94.9 crore was later “illegally” transferred to different bank accounts while Rs 5 crore was deposited back. The bank has filed a separate complaint about the scam with the Central Bureau of Investigation.