The chairperson of Siddhartha Vihar Trust, Rahul M Kharge, has withdrawn his request for the allotment of five acres of civic amenity site in Bengaluru to set up a 'Multi-Skill Development Centre, Training Institutes and Research Centre'.

The move by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s son Rahul Kharge comes close on the heels of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife Parvathi returning the 14 sites to Mysuru Urban Development Authority after the Lokayukta police registered a case against Siddaramaiah, his wife and brother-in-law.

The BJP IT department in charge Amit Malviya in a social media post questioned the allotment of the site and called it ‘misuse of power, nepotism, and conflict of interest’.

The BJP Rajya Sabha member Lahar Singh Siroya too questioned the decision on ‘X’ saying, "When did the Kharge family become aerospace entrepreneurs to be eligible for KIADB land? Is this about misuse of power, nepotism, and conflict of interest?" Mallikarjun Kharge’s younger son Priyank Kharge, who is a minister in the Karnataka government, shared the information with the scanned copies of the letter on his ‘X’ handle.

In a letter to the Chief Executive Officer of the Karnataka Industrial Development Board (KIADB) on September 20, Rahul Kharge wrote, "Withdrawal of our request for Civic Amenity site to set up Multi Skill Development Centre, Training Institutes and a Research Centre." He said the objective of the Siddhartha Vihar Trust was to create more employable opportunities through skill development in emerging technologies for students and unemployed youth.

"The proposed Muiti-Skill Deveiopment Centre aimed primarily to serve youngsters to make them more employable and industry ready with skills and future skills. It was also designed to help students who were unable to pursue college education," Rahul Kharge said.

The trust preferred a site within the KIADB industrial area because of its proximity to high-growth industries as it would provide invaluable exposure and opportunities for young people, he said.

"Siddhartha Vihar Trust is a public educational, cultural, and charitable trust and not a private or family-run trust. All institutions established under its aegis are ‘Not For Profit’," he explained.

While sharing the information, Priyank Kharge wrote that the trust was fully eligible to apply for and receive an allotment of a CA site for an educational institution. However, any educational institution cannot function effectively while constantly facing malafide, baseless and politically motivated allegations, he said, adding that the trust did not wish to be drawn into long-drawn controversies which would divert attention and efforts from the primary objective of education and social service.

"In light of the circumstances, the Trust wrote to the KIADB to withdraw our proposal and withdraw our request for a CA site for establishing a skill development and research centre," the minister said.

The Trust had submitted its proposal to the KIADB on February 12, 2024, and a month later, the proposal was approved.

After the announcement, Lahar Singh Siroya said he felt vindicated.

"I feel vindicated. The Kharge family has returned the 5-acre KIADB land illegally allotted to them. When I had raised this issue I was threatened and abused by Kharge Jr. and his cronies. Truth has prevailed. After all, this may be a tactical move to seek the CM’s chair," the Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka said in a post on ‘X’.

He recalled his August 25 post, where he had issued a statement on the social media platform questioning the allotment of land.

"Will the Kharge family eventually have to give up this land like Mr Siddaramaiah will have to give up the controversial MUDA sites in Mysuru? Will this allocation be probed?” Siroya said.

The BJP MP had complained to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot against the land allotment.

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