Bengaluru: Enforcement Directorate (ED) that is probing into the multi-crore scam at Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation Ltd., has submitted a charge sheet naming former ST Welfare Minister B. Nagendra as Accused-1, at the Special Court For People’s Representatives in the city on Tuesday.

Strangely, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the State Government to probe into the same scam, had also filed two charge sheets earlier in August this year, naming total 12 accused, but there was no mention of Nagendra. But, in the charge sheet of ED, along with Nagendra, Sathyanarayana Verma, the Chairman of First Credit Co-operative Bank, Hyderabad, has also been named as the joint Accused-1.

The charge sheet containing 5,114 pages has named 24 accused and during the interrogation of Nagendra, it has emerged that the crores of funds of ST Corporation was diverted to bear the expenditure on liquor in Telangana, during the recently held elections to Lok Sabha, as mentioned in the charge sheet.

It is also learnt that the name of Chairman of ST Corporation and Raichur Rural MLA Basanagouda Daddal, who was also interrogated in relation to the scam, has no mention in the charge sheet, owing to lack of evidence.

The SIT charge sheet that was filed a month ago had the names of 12 accused including Sathyanarayana Verma, Sathyanarayana Itakari, Managing Director of ST Development Corporation Padmanabha, Accounts Officer Parashurama, Nekkunti Nagaraj, Nageshwar, Saitej and others.

Strangely, the charge sheet filed over the suicide of Accounts Superintendent of ST Development Corporation  Chandrasekharan in Shivamogga Court, by SIT, also has no mention of Nagendra.