Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday produced documentary evidence to prove that the allocation of sites by the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) is not illegal. The politician, who has presented the highest number of finance budgets in Karnataka, decided to use facts, figures, and documents to demonstrate his innocence and transparency.
Siddaramaiah criticised the opposition BJP and JDS for attempting to tarnish his image by spreading falsehoods while their own party members have benefited from a similar MUDA scheme, which provided alternative sites to those affected by the illegal acquisition of land by the authority.
‘My Life Is An Open Book’
“I am releasing copies of the documents and placing them before the people of Karnataka. I will hold up a mirror to expose their political drama,” Siddaramaiah said, emphasising that both opposition parties have been raising the MUDA scam issue during the two weeks of the House session but have been unable to produce a single official document to support their accusations against him and his family.
“My life is an open book. Each page is marked by transparency and honesty. I have maintained the sanctity of politics without a black spot,” said the chief minister, adding that the BJP and JDS are “desperate”. “After we won 135 seats, they made politically motivated statements. They are trying to smear the CM’s character. They cannot tolerate seeing me become the chief minister for the second time,” the two-time Congress CM told mediapersons.
State urban development minister Byrathi Suresh, who was also present at the press conference, named BJP and JDS leaders and MLAs such as GT Deve Gowda, SR Mahesh, and Union steel and mines minister HD Kumaraswamy as beneficiaries from MUDA. He also highlighted how Kumaraswamy had recently sought an alternative site after being allotted 21,000 square feet of land in Mysuru.
Twists & Turns in MUDA Land Holding
Defending his name and asserting that neither he nor his wife had any role in the alleged illegal allotment of MUDA sites, Siddaramaiah addressed the Opposition, stating that the allotment took place when the BJP was in power and they have no “moral standing” to question his integrity.
The controversial 3.16 acres of land purchased by Siddaramaiah’s brother-in-law PM Mallikarjun Swamy was legally valid, as evidenced by documentation. He stated that contrary to BJP and JDS allegations that the land was granted under the land grant rules (which are only applicable to Dalits and are inalienable), the land was actually auctioned to Linga bin Jwara in 1935. At that time, the auction price of the land (survey no. 464 of Kesare Hobli) was Rs 3, as there were no other participants in the auction. The sale was confirmed on October 13, 1935 to Linga.
“The BJP and JDS are spreading misinformation that this sale was under the land grant rules, but this shows that the sale was legal,” the chief minister said.
On April 10, 1993, Linga’s family members wrote to the government, stating that they had no objection to the ‘khata’ being transferred to J Devaraju, the third son. The signatories included Linga’s eldest son Mallayah, Puttagowramma (widow of the second son Mairalayya), and Manjunatha Swamy, another family member.
In 1997, the land was de-notified after a three-member panel headed by the then Principal Secretary Revenue V Balasubramanian determined there was no plan for a water supply scheme at the end of the layout. The committee dropped 19 such proposals for de-notification. Six years later, Siddaramaiah’s brother-in-law, BM Mallikarjun Swamy, purchased this de-notified land from Devaraju on August 25, 2004, which was registered as per the law. On October 6, 2010, Mallikarjuna Swamy gifted this land to his sister Parvathi, who is Siddaramaiah’s wife.
“What is illegal about this?” Siddaramaiah asked.
In 2014, Parvathi discovered that her land had been illegally acquired by MUDA, converted into sites, and sold.
“Is there any illegality in this?” Siddaramaiah questioned again. He added that his wife had filed an application with MUDA for alternate sites as her land was ‘illegally acquired’.
“I told my wife that as long as I am chief minister, this application will not be entertained. I also informed MUDA not to consider her application,” he said.
Didn’t Ask for Developed Land: CM
In a similar instance of illegal acquisition by MUDA, one Sundaramma went to the Karnataka High Court and sought alternative land. The Karnataka HC directed MUDA to provide alternative sites for the entire 2.17 acres that had been illegally acquired by the authority.
“We did not ask for any developed area to be given to us. As per the 50:50 formula ordered by the high court, MUDA itself passed a resolution stating that it was a mistake on its part to acquire the property without informing the landowners. At that time, the chairman of MUDA belonged to the BJP. MUDA acquired 3.16 acres or 1,48,000 square feet of land, and what was given as per the 50:50 formula of MUDA was 38,284 square feet. Under a similar formula, a total of 1,328 sites were given in the Vijayanagar layout. Parvathi received 14 sites,” the CM said.
The issue of illegal encroachment was discussed in a MUDA meeting on December 7, 2020, in which JDS leader GT Deve Gowda, BJP’s SA Ramadas, L Nagendra, and Congress leader Sandesh Nagaraj were present, he pointed out.
He also mentioned that the BJP urban development minister at the time, BN Bacchegowda, had reviewed the issue and observed that the final notification for land acquisition was issued before August 20, 1997. Additionally, the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) had passed a resolution on July 24, 1997, to abandon the proposal for land acquisition. MUDA discontinued the acquisition of 235.30 acres of land across 13 different layouts since 1984, he pointed out.
The chief minister also said he had met with Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot on the matter and had sought a report from him. The CM said he has sent the report and informed the Governor that everything is legal and that the BJP and the JDS were spreading lies.
“All these documents will be submitted to the Justice PN Desai Commission of Inquiry, which we ordered on July 14,” Siddaramaiah said.
Politics of Protest
Karnataka’s BJP members protested in the Parliament premises, alleging corruption in MUDA and the Valmiki Development Corporation illegal money transfer scam. The BJP and JDS have been pressuring Siddaramaiah to step down from his post in the wake of the allegations.
MLAs from both parties staged an overnight ‘dharna’ in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and held day-long protests with song and dance to highlight their allegations of how “corrupt” the Congress government is. They have been calling for Siddaramaiah’s resignation and a CBI investigation into the alleged scam, which they claim amounts to more than Rs 5,000 crore.
Karnataka MP and former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai said the Congress in Karnataka had misappropriated Rs 1,087 crore meant for the Valmiki Development Corporation, while former Congressman, now BJP MP, and another former Karnataka CM Jagadish Shettar accused Siddaramaiah of avoiding discussions about the issue in the assembly.
A complaint was also filed by social activist Snehamayi Krishna against Siddaramaiah and nine others, alleging forgery of documents to claim compensation from MUDA. In the complaint letter, he accused Siddaramaiah, his wife Parvathy, brother-in-law Malikarjuna Swamy Devaraj, who claimed to be a landowner, and his family of wrongdoing and fraudulent activities by creating fake documents to obtain plots worth crores of rupees.
Lashing out at BJP MPs who were protesting in front of Parliament on Friday, Siddaramaiah said: “A non-issue is being made into an issue by protesting in front of Parliament. Did they protest when the state was completely ignored in so many budgets that were presented or even raised it in the debates in the Parliament?”
He said the BJP MPs did nothing for five years when they were 25 in number, and now that they are 18, they are still not prepared to raise issues related to the welfare of Karnataka.
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said the Congress in Karnataka will embark on a padyatra on issues affecting the state. “We will expose the scams of the BJP every day. I am challenging Kumaraswamy, Basavaraj Bommai, and Jagadish Shettar to a public debate on this issue,” Shivakumar said.