Bangalore: Lokayukta Justice Patil in Illegal Land Acquisition Row

Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Sep 16: In what may turn out to be a major embarassment to the recently-appointed Lokayukta Justice Shivraj Patil, it has now come to light that three plots in Bangalore are owned by him and his wife, in violation of rules.

The rule states that a person can own only one land alloted by a goverment agency or private housing cooperative society in the Bangalore metropolitan limits. Neither he/she nor the family members are allowed to own another plot.

However, Patil and his wife Annapurna have not one but three government plots in Bangalore, which is against Section 10 (a) of the house building cooperative societies by-laws, implemented by the state government in 1993, which bars any member or his family who has been allotted a site by a society from getting another in the name of other family members.

The lands were acquired in 1982 (2,400 sq ft in Vasant Nagar where a house was built), 1994 (9,600 sq ft at Allalasandra) and 2006 (4,012 sq ft near Nagawara), sources said.

Ironically, one of the plots owned by Annapurna was allotted by the Vyalikaval House Building Cooperative Society, which is being probed by the Lokayukta for merging a public road with the premises of Yeddyurappa's family firm.

Justice Patil is currently probing the charges of corruption and illegal land deals against former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, and thus the new revelation, if found true, may prove to be a big headache for the Lokayukta.

However, speaking to the news channel, Justice Patil denied the allegations and said that he did not violate any law. He also added that his wife returned her property in Bangalore on Wednesday September 14 so as not to give scope for any misunderstandings.

He also said that his family had bought the land from VBHCS through an auction to raise money for the society and that in such cases, the house building cooperative rules do not apply.