NEW DELHI, Nov 4: The Lokayukta Police on Monday issued summons to the Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to appear before the Lokayukta on November 6 for questioning in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment case, official sources said.
“Yes, Mysore Lokayukta has issued a notice regarding MUDA. I will go to Mysore Lokayukta on 6th November,” said the chief minister. The Chief Minister will appear before Superintendent of Police (SP) TJ Udesh, who is the head of the Mysuru Lokayukta police team investigating the alleged MUDA scam.
Both Siddaramaiah and his wife Parvathi, along with his brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy and Devaraju, from whom Swamy purchased a plot later gifted to Parvathi, are named in the FIR registered by the Mysuru Lokayukta police on September 27.
The case was lodged after an order by the special court in Bengaluru directing the Lokayukta to carry out a probe against Siddaramaiah on allegation of illegalities in the allotment of 14 sites worth Rs 56 crore to his wife Parvathi by MUDA.
Earlier, the Karnataka High Court upheld Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot’s sanction to investigate Siddaramaiah in the MUDA case. Earlier in September, the Chief Minister’s wife, in a letter to MUDA Commissioner Raghunandan, had expressed her willingness to return the 14 sites, following allegations of illegalities in their allotment.
Expressing the willingness to take back the sites, the MUDA Commissioner said, “We won’t decline if someone returns MUDA property, we have already discussed.” The Lokayukta on October 25 questioned his wife Parvathi, who is the second accused in the case. The Lokayukta also questioned the third accused Mallikarjuna Swamy, brother-in-law of Siddaramaiah and land owner J Devaraju.
Siddaramaiah alleged that his family was dragged into the controversy by members of the Opposition parties. “My wife Parvathi has returned the lands that were given in the form of compensation for the land that was seized by MUDA in Mysuru’s neighbourhood for developmental activities. The people of the state also know that the Opposition parties created a false complaint and dragged my family into the controversy to create political hatred against me,” Siddaramaiah said.
Earlier the Enforcement Directorate (ED) also booked the Chief Minister, his wife Parvathi, and some others in a money laundering case linked to the land allotment case, taking cognisance of the FIR by the Lokayukta.
(Manas Dasgupta)