Bengaluru, Jan 18 (IANS): Following the Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation proving the illegal allotments by the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), the Karnataka BJP has claimed that it is a major victory in its fight against the scam.
BJP state President, B.Y. Vijayendra stated on Saturday that the ED's investigation has exposed significant corruption involving CM Siddaramaiah who allegedly used his political influence to illegally allocate sites in the name of his wife and demanded his resignation.
“If CM Siddaramaiah values the integrity of his office, he must step down immediately and allow an impartial probe to proceed. The people of Karnataka deserve transparency, accountability, and justice,” he urged.
Vijayendra further pointed out, “The allocation of sites to benamis and dummies of influential persons further highlights the systemic corruption at play. When the Governor granted sanction for prosecution of CM Siddaramaiah, the Congress party spared no effort in insulting and undermining the constitutional authority of the Governor.”
The Karnataka High Court had also upheld the Governor's decision, emphasising that the allegations against the Chief Minister's family warranted deeper investigation, he noted.
The ED has thwarted any malicious attempt by CM Siddaramaiah to subvert the investigation by misusing the government machinery, Vijayendra claimed.
“The BJP and JD(S) have been relentless in our protests, both within and outside the Assembly, against this blatant misuse of power by the CM and his cronies. Our ‘Mysuru Chalo’ march was a monumental success, which put the spotlight on the irregularities of Chief Minister in the MUDA scam,” Vijayendra emphasised.
The ED's findings not only validate our persistent fight against corruption but also prove that there is more to this than what meets the eyes, he stated.
This is also a big slap on those who were quick to deride our campaign against corruption, he slammed.
This revelation is merely the tip of the iceberg. It is alleged that thousands of crores in public money have been misappropriated in this scam. A comprehensive CBI investigation is required to uncover the full extent of this scam, Vijayendra opined.
In a setback to CM Siddaramaiah, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Bangalore Zonal Office has provisionally attached 142 immovable properties having an approximate market value of Rs 300 crore under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with the MUDA case.
CM Siddaramaiah is accused number one in the case and the investigation is also conducted against others who got the illegal allotments done through the MUDA. His wife B.M. Parvathi is the second accused.
“The role of ex-MUDA commissioner D.B. Natesh has emerged as instrumental in illegal allotment of compensation sites to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife B.M. Parvathi,” said ED in a statement.
The ED further said that it has also been revealed that money was routed through a cooperative society for the purchase of property, luxury vehicles etc. in the name of relatives of G.T. Dinesh Kumar, who was the previous commissioner of MUDA.
Searches conducted during the investigation further revealed that a large number of sites, other than 14 sites allotted to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife B.M. Parvathi, have been illegally allotted by MUDA as compensation to real estate businessmen, who in turn have sold these sites at a huge profit and generated huge amount of unaccounted cash.