Lokayukta police quiz ex-MUDA Commissioner

    Mysuru, Nov 28 (PTI) The Lokayukta police probing the MUDA site allotment case on Thursday quizzed its former Commissioner P S Kantharaju, Lokayukta sources said.
    Kantharaju was the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) Commissioner for over two years, from September 2017 to November 2019.
    Speaking to reporters after coming out from the Lokayukta police office here, the former MUDA Commissioner said he presented all the points pertaining to the issue to the Investigation Officer (IO).
    "Back in 2017, it was decided in the Board meeting to return an equal amount of undeveloped land to the land loser. We presented the matter before the MUDA board meeting in December 2017. The issue was related to a consolidated decision of MUDA. The IO asked me about the decision taken on this issue, which I explained," Kantharaju said.
    Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his wife Parvathi B M, brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy and others are accused in the case.
    In the MUDA case, it is alleged that compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah's wife in an upmarket area in Mysuru, which had higher property value as compared to the location of her land, which had been allegedly being acquired ‘illegally’ by the MUDA.
    The MUDA had allotted plots to Parvathi under a 50:50 ratio scheme in lieu of 3.16 acres of her land, where it developed a residential layout.
    Under the controversial scheme, MUDA allotted 50 per cent of developed land to the land losers in lieu of undeveloped land acquired from them for forming residential layouts.
    It is alleged that Parvathi had no legal title over this 3.16 acres of land at survey number 464 of Kasare village, Kasaba hobli of Mysuru taluk.
    Karnataka Lokayukta police and the Directorate of Enforcement have launched an investigation into the 'scam'.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)