Karnataka: Former CM Kumaraswamy Dubs 'Cash For Posting' As Sixth Guarantee Of Congress Govt, Says CMO Is Now 'Corruption Management Office'

Upping the ante against the newly elected Congress government in Karnataka, former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Wednesday alleged that “cash for posting” is rampant and had already become the sixth guarantee of the ruling party.

Kumaraswamy said that large scale ‘transfer business’ is going on where huge money is being charged from officials to retain their current posting or secure 'lucrative' posts.

The former CM termed the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government as "looters" indulging in large scale ‘transfer business’. He charged the officials in the chief minister’s office (CMO) of demanding money for transfers.

“Kannadigas had thought CMO was Chief Minister’s Office. They have now understood that this has now become corruption management office,” the former CM tweeted, tagging the transfer order and cancellation of the transfer order.

"I have a pen drive in my pocket which has an evidence of Congress government's corruption in the state. I will release it when the right time comes and I will not release it without any solid information. A senior minister in the current cabinet is involved in corruption during the transfers of employees in the department," he told reporters in Bengaluru.

Kumaraswamy claimed ₹10 crore is being charged for each transfer in the state's energy department and that one of the transferred officers earns a staggering ₹50 lakh per day.

"A new tax system YST (Yathindra Siddaramaiah Tax) has been introduced by the government," Kumaraswamy alleged.

“There is a GST in the country. Under this government, they have started some tax called YST. I am trying to ascertain what that is,” Kumaraswamy told reporters.

“You should ask (what YST means) those who are chairing meetings with senior officials till midnight. You should ask those who had deputed officials for this transfer business,” he said when asked what he meant by YST tax.

Yathindra, who courted a major controversy during the previous tenure of Siddaramaiah after a firm linked to him landed a contract for providing medical services to state-run hospitals, did not contest the 2023 assembly polls.

A doctor by profession, Yathindra took the political plunge and managed to win on debut from Varuna in the 2018 assembly elections. However he stepped aside to facilitate his father to contest the seat in the recent assembly election.