Congress MLC Veerabhadrappa in a spot over fake travel bills

DHNS
July 4, 2017

Bengaluru, Jul 4: Senior Congress leader and MLC Allum Veerabhadrappa appears to have found himself in a spot over the controversy related to fake travel bills.

Allum

Veerabhadrappa has recently written to the Legislative Council Secretariat stating that he is ready to repay the money he had claimed as travel allowance if it is not as per the procedure. The MLC has also requested the Secretariat to let him know the total amount that he is supposed to repay in this regard. But the Council Secretariat had so far kept the letter under wraps. The Secretariat has forwarded the letter to Council Chairman D H Shankaramurthy.

The BJP leader in Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Council Padmanabha Reddy had accused eight MLCs, including Veerabhadrappa, of claiming lakhs of rupees as travel allowance from the Council Secretariat by submitting fake bills. He had complained against the lawmakers to the Council Chairman and urged him to disqualify them. Raghu Achar, N S Boseraju, S Ravi, R B Thimmapura (all Congress), C R Manohar, Appaji Gowda (both JD-S) and M D Lakshminarayana (Independent) are the other MLCs.

Reddy’s contention is that the MLCs had voted in favour of the Congress in the 2016 BBMP mayoral election, claiming that they are residents of Bengaluru. And at the same time they also claimed about Rs 37 lakh as travel allowance between October 2016 and April 2017 from the Council Secretariat stating that they reside in various cities and towns of the state. Veerabhadrappa had claimed Rs 3.20 lakh as travel allowance stating that he was a resident of Ballari, according to Reddy.

Subsequent to Reddy’s complaint, Shankaramurthy issued a notice to all the eight MLCs, seeking their response. They were given time till June 3 to respond. But they sought one month’s time, which was granted.

Veerabhadrappa wrote to the Secretariat much before the Chairman issued the notice. Veerabhadrappa is a Congress leader from Ballari. He has also served as a minister and state Congress president in the past.

When contacted, Veerabhadrappa said: “All bills are prepared by the Accounts section of the Secretariat. I have nothing to do with them. So, I have asked the Council Secretariat to let me know if there is any procedural lapse. And I have told them that, if necessary, I am ready to pay back the money. I have not done anything that is against the rule book in my long political career. It is actually the duty of the Council Secretariat to ensure that all procedures are followed.”

But Reddy said Veerabhadrappa’s letter has proven that he is guilty. “Being lawmakers, the MLCs are supposed to be role models for others. Instead, they have misled the Council and claimed money by submitting fake bills. The Chairman should disqualify them immediately,” he demanded.

Reddy also accused Veerabhadrappa of voting in both the BBMP and the Ballari mayoral elections. Soon after voting in the BBMP mayoral election in September last year, he got his name in the voters’ list in Bengaluru deleted. Later, his name was included in the voters’ list in Ballari and he voted in the Ballari mayoral election held in April 2017.

Shankarmurthy was not available for comment.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 15,2025

Udupi, Dec 15: What was meant to be a post-pilgrimage gathering turned tragic in Padukere village of Brahmavar taluk, Udupi district, late Sunday night, when a clash among youths escalated into a fatal assault, leaving one man dead.

The victim has been identified as 30-year-old Santosh Mogaveera, a resident of Padukere.

According to preliminary information, the incident took place during a late-night drinking party involving a group of local youths who had recently returned after completing their pilgrimage to the Sabarimala shrine. An argument reportedly broke out among the group and soon escalated into a violent confrontation.

During the ensuing brawl, Santosh Mogaveera was allegedly assaulted and collapsed at the spot after sustaining serious injuries. He was rushed by local residents to a private hospital in Brahmavar, where doctors declared him dead.

On receiving information, senior police officials, including Brahmavar Circle Inspector Gopikrishna, Kota Police Sub-Inspector Praveen Kumar T, Station ASI Manthesh Jabagoudar, and head constables Pradeep and Ashok, visited the spot and conducted an inspection.

Police have taken four youths into custody in connection with the incident. A case has been registered at the Kota police station, and further investigation is underway to ascertain the exact sequence of events leading to the death.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 5,2025

Mangaluru: In a significant step to curb online hate and intimidation, Mangaluru City Police have registered a suo motu case against multiple Instagram accounts accused of circulating alleged provocative and threatening content.

While monitoring social media activity on Tuesday, Kankanady Town PSI Anitha Nikkam identified the Instagram handle ‘team_targetttt_900’ for posting a hate message alongside images of lethal weapons. Another account, ‘team_nagara_900’, allegedly shared a threatening post targeting activist Bharath Kumdelu, tagging additional pages such as KARAVALI-OFFICIAL.

Several other accounts — including ‘immu_bhai.fan’, ‘target_boy_900’, ‘kings_of_manglore’, ‘team_target_boys.900’, ‘arshad_mangalore’, ‘target_ka19_ullal’, ‘team_target__’, ‘troll_tigersz_900’, ‘tr_group_900’, and ‘team_target_900’ — are also under scrutiny for spreading similar inflammatory material, police said.

Authorities have urged citizens, especially young social media users, to report suspicious pages and avoid engaging with groups that glorify violence or threaten individuals. Online hate can quickly escalate into real-world harm, and police stress that sharing or promoting such content can attract legal consequences.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 2,2025

DKSsiddu.jpg

Bengaluru: 'Nati koli saaru' (country chicken curry) considered one of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s favourites along with steaming hot idlis was on the breakfast menu at Deputy CM D K Shivakumar’s residence on Tuesday, according to official sources.

The spread also included 'nati koli' fry, vada and pongal, among other items, they said.

In an apparent show of unity, Siddaramaiah visited Shivakumar’s residence for breakfast, just days after the two leaders shared a meal amid a simmering power tussle in the state Congress.

Siddaramaiah drove to the Deputy CM’s residence in Sadashivanagar, where he was received by Shivakumar and his brother D K Suresh, who is a former Congress MP.

Suresh and Kunigal MLA H D Ranganath, a relative of Shivakumar, joined them for breakfast, which featured a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.

Speaking to reporters later, Siddaramaiah said Shivakumar had invited him during his visit to the CM’s residence for breakfast on Saturday.

Asked about the difference between the two meals, the chief minister said, "At his (Shivakumar’s) house it was non-veg, while at my house it was veg. He is a vegetarian, I am a non-vegetarian. I had not prepared non-veg. I told DK to get chicken from the village as you won’t get the original in Bengaluru."

Shivakumar said he had initially invited Siddaramaiah to his residence, but the CM had suggested visiting his place first and reciprocating later. "It was a vegetarian breakfast at the CM’s house on Saturday," he noted.

"Today, I invited him (the CM) to my house. He enjoyed the breakfast, which had his Mysuru taste," Shivakumar added. At this point, Siddaramaiah remarked that Shivakumar’s wife is also from Mysuru.

Saturday’s breakfast at Siddaramaiah’s official residence, held as part of efforts by the Congress high command to ease tensions in the leadership dispute between the two, reportedly included idlis and sambar, according to official sources.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.