A fierce political battle over commission allegations has erupted in Karnataka following the Justice H.N. Nagmohan Das Commission’s report on the alleged 40 per cent commission practices under the previous BJP-led government.

The report, submitted yesterday reignited tensions, with the Karnataka BJP retaliating by accusing the current Congress government, led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, of extracting a 60 per cent commission.

The Karnataka BJP took to X, unveiling a motion poster captioned "Just loot it; flat 60 per cent Commission," featuring Siddaramaiah’s image under the swoosh logo of a famous sportswear brand and the tagline "All day, all night – just loot it." This salvo comes as a direct counter to the Congress’s earlier claims that the BJP regime operated a "40 per cent commission" system through posters pasted all over the State with former CM Bommai's image in a QR code saying PAY CM, a narrative that helped the Congress secure victory in the 2023 Assembly elections.

Union Minister for Food, Public Distribution, and Consumer Affairs Pralhad Joshi, speaking at a meeting in Hubballi on Thursday, demanded transparency in the process. "The investigation must be fair, and the report should be tabled in the Assembly," he said. Questioning the commission’s methods, Joshi added, "Who received notices? As far as we know, none of the accused were summoned. Issue notices first, and we’ll respond. We’re not afraid of these empty threats."

State Women and Child Welfare Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar dismissed the BJP’s counter-allegations, emphasising that the Justice Nagmohan Das Commission had completed its probe into the '40 per cent commission' claims against the BJP. "The BJP can say what it wants, but the report is in. The Cabinet will review it." Hebbalkar accused the BJP of deflecting attention from its own shortcomings. "They invoke Lord Ram, but their deeds mirror those of Ravan’s. With no substantive issues, they resort to baseless attacks," she charged.

BJP MLA S.R. Vishwanath reacting on uproar said, "The Nagmohan Das report is out, but we don’t know its contents yet. Once the truth emerges, we’ll debate it inside and outside the Assembly."

The Justice H.N. Nagmohan Das Commission’s 20,000-page report, including annexures, was submitted to CM Siddaramaiah yesterday. Tasked with investigating the contractors’ association’s complaints, the commission examined claims of a pervasive 40 per cent commission in government contracts under the BJP regime. It also probed broader irregularities, such as not-so-transparent contract allotments, and incorporated public feedback (with inputs from IANS).