MUDA Case: K’taka HC Adjourns Hearing On CM Siddaramaiah’s Petition

The Karnataka High Court has postponed the hearing of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s petition challenging a previous order that upheld the Governor’s approval for an investigation into the alleged MUDA (Mysuru Urban Development Authority) scam. The hearing is now rescheduled for January 20.

Siddaramaiah had filed an appeal against a decision made by a single bench of the High Court on September 23, which dismissed his challenge to the Governor’s sanction. This sanction allowed an investigation into alleged illegal land allotments to his wife by MUDA. Justice Nagaprasanna, who delivered the ruling, stated that the Governor’s decision did not show any errors in judgment.

In his petition, Siddaramaiah questioned the validity of the sanction granted by Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, which permitted an investigation under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act and allowed prosecution under Section 218 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. The Governor had issued the sanction on August 17, following requests from social activists Pradeep Kumar SP and TJ Abraham from Bengaluru, and Snehamayi Krishna from Mysuru.

The allegations against Siddaramaiah suggest that MUDA unlawfully allotted 14 plots to his wife in a prime area of Mysuru. Following a court directive on September 27, the Mysuru Lokayukta initiated an investigation and filed an FIR in the matter.

Case History

On Wednesday, Siddaramaiah raised concerns about a letter sent by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to the Lokayukta just before his petition was scheduled to be heard in the High Court. He accused the ED of attempting to influence the judicial process, stating, “Just a day before our petition is set to be heard in the High Court, the Enforcement Directorate writes to the Lokayukta, which seems intended to sway the judiciary. The ED’s investigation itself raises doubts. A proper course of action would have been to submit the findings to the Lokayukta after completing the investigation, rather than leaking it to the media and attempting to create bias,” Siddaramaiah posted on X (formerly Twitter).

In addition to the ongoing investigation, the ED has initiated a money laundering case against Siddaramaiah and others, based on the FIR filed by the Lokayukta in connection with the MUDA scandal, further complicating the situation for the Karnataka Chief Minister.

Despite the mounting pressure and controversy, Siddaramaiah has consistently denied any wrongdoing, insisting that the charges are politically motivated. He has refused to step down from his position, despite calls for his resignation from the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

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