JOIN USHe made his position clear at a press conference on Wednesday, following allegations levelled against him by the Leader of the Opposition in BBMP, M Nagaraj.
When questioned how a police officer, Lakshman Singh, who was raided by Lokayukta for allegedly amassing property disproportionate to his known sources of income, got the award, the Mayor quoted the law to his convenience.
"Until proven guilty by the court of law, no one can be called tainted or criminal," said the Mayor.
He added that the list of awardees given by Nagaraj too carried at least three to four criminals.
“But I am not going to name them because it will be an insult to them and also to Kempegowda," he added.
Hitting back at Nagaraj, the floor leader of the BBMP Katte Satyanarayana said he had lied by saying that he recommended only eight people.
"The fact is that he had recommended 41 people for the award. He called us several times to include some more names and we entertained most of his requests."
He alleged that Nagaraj not only gave the list of names but also called many people to be ready to receive the award. To substantiate the claim, the Palike is collecting the details of phone calls made by Nagaraj, he added.
Satyanarayana also refuted Nagaraj's allegation that four members of a family were given awards.
"Vasudev Adiga's wife is Vinoda Adiga and not Ramadevi Adiga, who got the Kempegowda award. The Adigas, who got the award, could be relatives but blood relation was never a criterion for giving the awards. Based on their performance in various fields, we gave them the awards," said Satyanarayana.
Regarding the shifting of the Dr Rajkumar glass house from Palike head office to Kantheerava Studio, the Mayor said the decision has to be taken after meeting Parvathamma Rajkumar.
"Since she is not keeping well for the past few days, we could not meet her," said the Mayor.
Mayoral elections
The new Mayor’s election will be held on April 29. All the standing committees will be dissolved after the Mayor steps down.
The standing committee on taxation and finance comprising 11 members will be formed the same day. Within a week of the formation of the taxation and finance committee, its chairperson will be elected.