Bengaluru: Union Minister D V Sadananda Gowda has demanded a probe into inflated food bills raised in the name of union ministers and other government officers by the officials of the protocol department at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA).
According to sources, DVS has claimed that bills for food and beverages have been raised in the name of three ministers from the state, including himself. Along with Gowda, bills were raised in the name of minister for chemicals and fertilisers Ananth Kumar and minister for food and civil aviation GM Siddeshwara.

Seeking an enquiry into the scam, Gowda has written to Karnataka government and has asked to take action against the erring airport officials.

According to sources, the size of the scam is yet to be established but it might run into a few lakhs.

A source said, “The job of the state government’s protocol personnel deployed at KIA is to usher in the state guests who land at or exit from KIA. There are 14 protocol officials led by a deputy secretary and two under-secretaries. These officials extend hospitality on behalf of the state and this includes serving coffee and snacks to VIPs in the lounge. For several years, the bills raised on food and beverages was in the Rs 35,000-40,000 range per month. But in the last few months the bills have been in the range of Rs 3-4 lakh per month.”