'Most corrupt govt in history': Mohandas Pai blasts Siddaramaiah for turning Karnataka from revenue surplus to deficit

Mohandas Pai, Chairman of Aarin Capital and former CFO at Infosys, has labeled the Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government as the "most corrupt government" the state has seen, alleging large-scale corruption and financial mismanagement. Speaking on the Bharatvaarta podcast, Pai accused the administration of prioritising freebies over meaningful investments like education and skill development.  

Pai said that Siddaramaiah has turned Karnataka's once-surplus revenue into a significant deficit. "(Former Chief Minister Basavaraj) Bommai left us with about Rs 22,000-23,000 crore revenue surplus. Next year, Siddaramaiah made a Rs 4,000 crore revenue deficit. This year, he’s got another Rs 27,000 crore deficit. That’s a Rs 45,000-50,000 crore swing in expenditure. And where has the money gone? It’s gone for freebies,” Pai said. He further criticised the government for borrowing money to fund these giveaways, saying, “You are borrowing money to give freebies.”  

Pai expressed dismay over Karnataka's low gross enrollment rate (GER) in higher education among southern states, standing at 36%. "Today, the gross enrollment rate for young people in 18 to 23 for the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka -- Karnataka is the lowest at 36. It's the lowest and we call ourselves an advanced state." 

The former CFO criticised the government for not providing adequate scholarships and training for youth. "Why is he (Siddaramaiah) not giving scholarship for young people to go to college and train them up? Karnataka produces 10 lakh jobs a year. Only about 45-50% are fulfilled by locals, the rest by people from outside. They come here, work hard, and do well. Nothing wrong with that. Why can't you train our one people. He (Siddarmaiah) is not doing that. 
He's giving freebies."

While acknowledging Siddaramaiah’s past success as a finance minister in making Karnataka a revenue-surplus state, Pai accused him of shifting focus under the guise of social justice. “He made Karnataka into a revenue surplus state. He did it, and he was a good finance minister. Now he’s turned. Now he’s talking about social justice for everybody. Where was social justice when he was in power for 10 years?” Pai questioned.  

Pai clarified that he is not opposed to direct benefit transfers (DBT) for the poor but stressed the need to identify and quantify beneficiaries to ensure the funds are used effectively. "I’m not against giving DBT to the poor. You should do it. I support that. But quantify the poor. The money that you’re giving, spend it on the same people for their children’s education,” he said, emphasising the need to prioritise skill development for sustainable progress.

Highlighting corruption, Pai alleged that both politicians and officials were deeply involved. “This government is possibly the most corrupt government we have seen. We thought the BJP government was corrupt. This government has the ability to do corruption on an industrial scale,” he said. 

According to Pai, ministers and officials were extorting money, with bribes being normalised for tasks like property tax assessments and plan approvals. He also mentioned inefficiencies in Bengaluru's civic systems, alleging manipulation in software handling approvals and taxes. "For the BBMP plan approval, the software is done by some small company in Pune. They manipulate it...We found there are three databases of property tax because each one is making money. They don’t want to automate because they make money,” Pai said.  

Pai also referred to allegations during Bommai’s tenure, including accusations of a 40% corruption rate in contracts. While describing Bommai as a “good man,” Pai criticised his lack of action during his time as chief minister. "Bommai did not show any performance. At the end of it, he left accused of 40% corruption, which I’m sure he did not do.”