AMN / BANGALORE
Karnataka Minister B Nagendra today resigned from the state Cabinet led by chief minister DK Shivakumar, as well as from his MLA seat, following allegations of his involvement in financial irregularities at the Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribe Development Corporation.
In tears at a press conference, he said he had decided to “voluntarily step down” to avoid “embarrassment to the party”.
“I am resigning of my own will to avoid the embarrassment that may cost my party because of unnecessary allegations made by the opposition party against me,” he said, adding that he was a victim of the BJP’s “manuvadi” politics.
Nagendra’s resignation came amid heightened political pressure on him and the Congress government over the alleged Valmiki Corporation scam. The BJP and JD(S) have been demanding the minister’s resignation since his re-induction into the Cabinet on August 3, alleging that he was linked to the alleged diversion of funds from the state-run corporation.
The opposition staged repeated protests inside and outside the legislature during the recent monsoon session, which was curtailed by three days and adjourned sine die on August 24 amid the continued uproar.