Daijiworld Media Network
Bengaluru, March 13: Snehamayi Krishna, the petitioner in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case, has filed a formal complaint with the Commissioner of the Central Vigilance Committee (CVC) against senior IPS officers serving in the Karnataka Lokayukta. This complaint pertains to the closure report filed by the Lokayukta, which gave a clean chit to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who was named as the first accused in the MUDA scam.
The complaint targets three senior IPS officers: additional director general of police (ADGP) Manish Kharbikar, IGP Subramanyeshwara Rao, and Mysuru Lokayukta SP T J Udesh, who led the investigation into the case and subsequently filed a closure report citing insufficient evidence against the CM and other accused.
Krishna has alleged that these officers acted under the influence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah while handling the MUDA scam, questioning their impartiality and demanding action against them. “I was dumbstruck by the actions of these senior IPS officers. They have surrendered themselves to the accused persons,” Krishna stated.
The petitioner further accused the officers of falsely claiming that there was a lack of evidence, despite what he believes is ample evidence against the accused, including Siddaramaiah. He also claimed that the officers submitted an interim report as the final report to the court.
“I need answers on whether these officers submitted a false report to the court under the pretext of insufficient evidence. Hence, all three IPS officers must be investigated to send a strong message to the bureaucracy,” Krishna emphasised.
One of the key issues highlighted in the complaint concerns the unlawful allotment of sites in the prestigious Vijayanagar locality of Mysuru, rather than in the Devanuru Third Stage, as outlined in the initial land records.
Krishna alleged that white correction fluid (whitener) was used to manipulate official documents, facilitating the allotments in Vijayanagar, where land prices range from Rs 23,000 to Rs 26,000 per square metre, in contrast to Rs 11,000 per square metre in Devanuru Third Stage. Despite these irregularities, the closure report did not mention this issue.
The report did recommend disciplinary action against then-Deputy Commissioner G Kumara Naik, now a Congress MP, and Tehsildar Malige Shankar, among others. However, Krishna pointed out that the officers failed to classify the false claims of conducting spot visits and submitting misleading reports as legal offences.
“The report submitted to the court failed to mention the unlawful allotment of land in Vijayanagar and the manipulation of documents,” he added.
Another significant aspect of the complaint is the officers’ failure to investigate the initials “DCM” marked on a document requesting the de-notification of land. Krishna argues that this suggests Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s involvement in the case, as he was serving as the Deputy Chief Minister at the time.
He called for further investigation into the role of Siddaramaiah and landowner J. Devaraju, both of whom were implicated in the land transactions.
In addition to the complaint with the CVC, Snehamayi Krishna had previously filed a writ petition before the division bench of the Karnataka High Court, questioning the single bench’s order that quashed his appeal for a CBI investigation into the MUDA case.
The Karnataka High Court had, on March 7, quashed the summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to CM Siddaramaiah’s wife, B.M. Parvathi, and Urban Development Minister Byrathi Suresh in connection with the MUDA case.
Krishna’s complaint against the Lokayukta officials adds another layer to the ongoing controversy surrounding the MUDA scam, further questioning the investigation and the integrity of the officials involved.