Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Friday, 21 August challenged the Opposition to serve formal notice and engage in a structured parliamentary debate over Planning and Statistics Minister B. Nagendra's alleged role in the Valmiki Development Corporation scam, even as Opposition Leader R. Ashoka declared that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would intensify its agitation and pursue the issue to its 'logical conclusion.'

Shivakumar's Challenge on the Floor

Speaking in the Legislative Council, Shivakumar questioned why the Opposition was demanding Nagendra's resignation without following parliamentary procedure. He insisted that any such demand must be backed by a formal notice and an open floor discussion.

'Why should Nagendra resign? What have the Opposition members found? What information do they have? Let them tell the people through the House what the CBI, ED and SIT have said. This is perhaps the first time such an incident is happening without a notice being given,' Shivakumar said.

He offered to dedicate an entire day — or even two — to debating the issue if the Opposition complied with procedure. He also acknowledged that he had himself sought Nagendra's resignation earlier, when he served as party president, to facilitate an investigation, but said the subsequent government inquiry had since been conducted.

A Counter-Challenge to the BJP

Shivakumar did not stop at defending his minister. He turned the spotlight on the Opposition, offering to discuss cases registered against Union and state ministers from the BJP if the Opposition gave notice.

'If I mention the names of the Union and State ministers against whom cases were registered and explain how the investigations were conducted, you may feel uncomfortable,' he said, in an apparent counter-offensive designed to widen the accountability debate beyond the ruling Congress.

He also pushed back against allegations that the scam proceeds had reached senior Congress leaders, calling for the Opposition to substantiate such claims on the record rather than outside the House.

Ashoka's Allegations and the ₹187 Crore Claim

Reacting after the session, Ashoka maintained that the government was shielding Nagendra by projecting him as innocent. He alleged that documents in his possession establish a scam of ₹187 crore, and cited the suicide note of Valmiki Development Corporation officer P. Chandrashekar, who reportedly stated that funds were transferred on the minister's instructions.

'Documents relate to the transfer of ₹40 crore. ₹50 crore was deposited in the Valmiki Corporation, and a separate loan was taken. I have exposed documents showing that new schemes were created to siphon off money and that funds were sent to Telangana,' Ashoka alleged.

He accused the ruling party of disrupting House proceedings to protect one minister, claiming the Opposition had been blocked from raising issues including drought relief and the NICE corridor project.

Political Stakes and What Comes Next

Ashoka said he intended to discuss the matter with Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, signalling that the BJP may seek to escalate the issue to the national level. He framed the controversy in terms of Dalit welfare, arguing that the ₹187 crore was meant for Dalit communities and that the Congress was covering up its diversion.

'We intend that the Rs 187 crore should reach the Dalits, while the Congress wants to cover up the matter,' Ashoka said.

This comes amid a broader pattern of Opposition pressure on the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government in Karnataka over multiple financial irregularities. With the BJP signalling further street-level agitation and potential central agency involvement, the political temperature around the Valmiki Corporation case is set to rise in the coming days.