BENGALURU, June 26 -- The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry after the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) identified suspected irregularities worth Rs.225 crore in the state's flagship Gruha Lakshmi welfare scheme, including payments to deceased beneficiaries, duplicate bank accounts and gaps in beneficiary records.

Leader of Opposition R Ashoka described the alleged fraud as "state sponsored cybercrime" and called for an investigation by the CBI and central cybercrime agencies. BJP state president Vijayendra Yediyurappa also sought a transparent, high level inquiry, alleging that the programme had turned into a large scale scam and seeking accountability for beneficiary verification ...