What is Congress' ‘40% commission’ charge against Karnataka government?

Ahead of the Karnataka assembly election, Congress and BJP attack each other over corruption charges.

The Congress has launched fresh attacks at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Karnataka government over the ‘40% commission charges' alleging that the right-wing party ‘talk about how to undermine the pride of Karnataka and do not comment on important issues related to the state'. Taking to Twitter, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said that people in the state are ‘tired of 40% commission. They want 100% commitment'.

Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi(PTI)

“There are 26 BJP MPs from Karnataka in the Lok Sabha, but they are often found absent. They talk about how to undermine the pride of Karnataka and do not comment on many important issues related to the state. Their agenda seems to be solely focused on collecting a 40% commission,” the Indian Youth Congress said in a tweet sharing the video clip where party spokesperson Gourav Vallabh was attacking the BJP government in Karnataka at a press conference.

On Sunday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi attacked the chief minister Basavaraj Bommai-led state government on the same line and called it a ‘40% sarkar’ adding that it had ‘gone beyond being corrupt’. Similarly, CM Bommai counterattacked the Wayanad MP and said that he had sent a chargesheet to him on Congress' alleged scams, on which he is still waiting for a response. “The 40% commission chargesheet is on him (Gandhi),” Bommai said.

What is the ‘40% commission’ charge against the Karnataka government?

The ‘40% commission’ row erupted in April, 2022, after the death of Belagavi-based contractor Santosh Patil, who accused former state minister and BJP leader KS Eshwarappa of demanding 40% commission for a government project. After Patil's claims, several contractors came forward to make similar allegations against government officials.

Similarly, the contractors' association had launched a massive protest alleging corruption in various government departments and non-payment of bills by the state government. The then president of the Karnataka State Contractors’ Association claimed last year that local contractors were not getting work as people from other states got government orders because of high corruption.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Contractors Association, which has 2,480 members, had alleged last year that the government has not cleared bills since December 2021.

The state will go to polls on May 10 while the counting will be done on May 13.