The Hindu : Front Page : Krishna hits back at his political detractors

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Tuesday, Oct 18, 2005

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Krishna hits back at his political detractors

Special Correspondent

I regret not ordering a CBI probe into the lapses in the UKP, says former Chief Minister

BANGALORE: Governor of Maharashtra S.M. Krishna has taken on his political detractors saying he is now regretting for not ordering a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the irregularities in the Upper Krishna Project (UKP) as recommended by the Committee on Estimates of the Karnataka Legislature in 1999.

Mr. Krishna was indirectly referring to the demand for inquiry into corruption when he was the Chief Minister pointed out in a World Bank report, as demanded by some of the political leaders of the State. Mr. Krishna kept away the protocol and conventions governing his office to give an interview to a Kannada television channel here on Monday. The estimates committee report had been given by the dissident Janata Dal (S) MLA, Vaijnath Patil, who has turned against the former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda. Mr. Krishna said after he became the Chief Minister the committee's recommendations were placed before him but he did not take any action as he was more interested in the development of the State.

Mr. Krishna said that when he was the Chief Minister the Government spent Rs. 7,000 crores on public works out of the loan extended by the World Bank. If at all an inquiry is ordered it should begin from the Public Works Department. Without substantiating, he said that the percentage of corruption in Karnataka was 37 per cent during the period 1994-1999 (when the Janata Dal was in power) and it fell to 9 per cent after he became the Chief Minister.

Mr. Krishna was unhappy with the functioning of the coalition Government as it had not only given up the programmes his Government had launched but had also failed to launch new ones. "I do not know what type of governance is this?'' he said

and noted that programmes launched by him had gained nationwide attention.

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