The Karnataka Lokayukta—a special ombudsman—submitted a huge report with 11,000 pages to a court in Bengaluru regarding the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) land case. This happened just a day after police cleared Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his wife Parvathi of any wrongdoing. Police said there was not enough proof to charge them.
The police, led by Superintendent Udesh, shared 27 volumes of documents with a court that handles cases involving lawmakers. They assured the public that the investigation is ongoing and the documents are important for the inquiry.
Recently, it was reported that the Lokayukta was likely to absolve Siddaramaiah and Parvathi from all accusations. On Wednesday, Lokayukta Police closed the case, stating no evidence was found to support the allegations made against the chief minister, his wife, and two others.
The case began when an activist named Snehamayi Krishna raised concerns about land allocated by MUDA. The report noted that the accusations were either misunderstandings of the law or simply not proven enough to take further legal action. Krishna was informed that if he disagrees with the findings, he can challenge them in court.
The land in question was a three-acre plot that Siddaramaiah claimed was given to his wife in 1998. In 2014, MUDA acquired this land for development without proper permissions, and Parvathi later applied for compensation. She ended up getting 14 residential plots worth over ₹8 crore, making people suspicious that this somewhat unfairly benefited their family.
In September 2024, the Karnataka High Court allowed Lokayukta to investigate the land allotment. On November 5, the court directed the Lokayukta Police to present a status report on Krishna’s claims for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe. However, on February 7, the court decided that the Lokayukta Police would continue the investigation.
Some skepticism arose from the opposition party, BJP, who questioned the fairness of the inquiry, suggesting it should be handed over to the CBI. Senior BJP leader Pralhad Joshi stated they could not trust the investigation since the same police officers were appointed by Siddaramaiah.
On the other hand, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar supported the Lokayukta’s report, saying that the allegations were politically motivated and Siddaramaiah was innocent. He emphasized that the Lokayukta is an independent body that operates without influence from the Chief Minister.
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