Bengaluru:
One man, one allegation, however two resignations below two chief ministers — this sums up the previous two years of B Nagendra’s political profession.
The Congress chief needed to step down from DK Shivakumar’s Cupboard in Karnataka due to the BJP’s relentless marketing campaign in opposition to him over a corruption allegation.
DK Shivakumar is new to the chief minister’s publish; nevertheless, neither the corruption allegation nor the BJP’s onslaught is model new. The identical allegation had pressured B. Nagendra out of Siddaramaiah’s cupboard in 2024.
The politician’s disappointment over the ouster was evident. Whereas asserting his newest resignation on Friday, he broke down in entrance of the media.
It was in Might 2023 that Nagendra grew to become a minister for the primary time. He was entrusted with the Scheduled Tribes Welfare portfolio, and he was carefully related to the Valmiki Company.
A yr later, he discovered himself surrounded by a large controversy.
In Might 2024, an accounts officer of the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Improvement Company died by suicide.
The officer, Chandrasekharan P, alleged an unauthorised switch of Rs 89.63 crore in his suicide notice.
The demise and the suicide notice stirred a political storm in Karnataka, with the opposition BJP demanding the minister’s resignation.
Amid protests, Nagendra relented. He resigned on June 6, 2024, however maintained that he was not linked to the corruption scandal. He was later arrested by the Enforcement Directorate and is at present out on bail.
DK Shivakumar’s elevation because the chief minister of Karnataka after a short energy wrestle with Siddaramaiah got here as a second wind for his profession.
Nagendra was re-inducted into the Karnataka Cupboard on August 3, 2026, after Shivakumar reshuffled the Cupboard. He bought the Planning and Statistics portfolio.
However his re-induction introduced recent complications for the chief minister, because the BJP renewed its assaults on the federal government within the Valmiki Company case.
After the CBI named Nagendra as an accused in its chargesheet, alleging monetary irregularities and unlawful gratification, the BJP intensified its demand for his elimination.
The Opposition triggered frequent disruptions within the state meeting to press for his resignation. The Home needed to be adjourned indefinitely, three days forward of schedule.
Intensifying its protest in opposition to Nagendra, the BJP introduced a Raichur-Ballari padayatra.
Nagendra claimed Shivakumar had requested him to not resign, however he selected to step down to stop the controversy from affecting the Congress authorities.
