Bengaluru, Oct. 22 -- Chief minister Siddaramaiah's economic advisor and Congress MLA Basavaraj Rayareddy has written to the chief minister alleging deep-rooted collusion between the state's sand mafia and government officials, accusing them of enabling large-scale illegal mining and causing massive losses to the state exchequer.

In his letter, Rayareddy estimated that Karnataka may have lost over Rs.400 crore in royalty revenue due to unchecked sand extraction.

"Corrupt officials and the sand mafia are hand in glove, looting the state's natural resources. If we can efficiently collect income tax and GST, why not ensure royalty collection on sand?" he wrote.

The Yelburga MLA, a former housing minister, alleged that around a network of ...