Bengaluru, Aug 7 (NationPress) The Karnataka BJP has called for a CBI investigation into state Labour Minister Santosh Lad, claiming he has misappropriated crores of rupees under the guise of health check-ups for construction workers.

During a press conference held at the BJP's state headquarters, BJP MLC K.S. Naveen demanded the immediate resignation of the Labour Minister, asserting that reports were generated by doctors even before any blood samples were taken for testing.

Naveen pointed out that while only 6,000 workers are officially registered with the Construction Workers Board among five labour unions in Chitradurga, government records inaccurately state the number of workers as 33,500.

The board allegedly conducted health tests on all 33,500 workers during a 15-day camp, claiming an expenditure of Rs 2,940 per worker.

“The reports are devoid of any hospital stamps or signatures. Out of 20 standard tests, around 16 were blood tests, but they inflated costs by itemizing charges for individual blood tests. Workers never received their blood test reports,” Naveen alleged.

He further claimed that Rs 19.74 crore was withdrawn for Chitradurga hospitals for these tests, yet the benefits never reached the workers or their children.

Tests were purportedly conducted under the names of workers’ children aged 7, 9, 14, and 15, using adult testing protocols— for instance, a test meant for a 60-year-old was conducted on a nine-year-old child, he alleged.

When contacted, 100 workers confirmed via phone that they had not undergone any tests.

Audio evidence corroborating this claim was presented to the media.

Naveen accused the government of submitting fraudulent health check-up reports in the name of the construction workers’ welfare fund, asserting that over Rs 300 crore was siphoned off by collecting funds without actually conducting tests statewide.

Information from Chitradurga reveals that health check-ups for 67,000 construction workers over two years cost Rs 19.74 crore, according to Naveen.

He criticized the pricing structure, stating that just like hotels charge separately for idli, sambar, and chutney, similar separate rates were established for health tests, allowing officials to extract excessive funds irregularly.

He mentioned that the prices for these tests were more than double the government-fixed rates for central government employees, and payments were processed accordingly.

During a recent visit to Chitradurga related to the gig worker scheme, workers confronted Minister Santosh Lad regarding irregularities within the Labour Department. Naveen claimed the minister did not respond.

He accused the government of intending to levy cess in the name of gig workers and directly misappropriate funds.