Bengaluru: The Dharwad Bench of the Karnataka High Court, headed by Justice M. Nagaprasanna, reserved its judgment on Monday regarding the petition seeking an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam. This decision followed the conclusion of arguments and counterarguments in the case.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is named as the first accused in the case, while his wife, B.M. Parvathi is the second accused. It has been alleged that Siddaramaiah used his political influence to secure compensation for 14 sites in the name of his wife in exchange for 3 acres and 16 guntas of land acquired by the MUDA.
The petitioner, Snehamayi Krishna, objected to the ongoing probe by the Karnataka Lokayukta and sought a CBI investigation into the scam.
While reserving the matter for judgment, the bench also directed the Karnataka Lokayukta to continue its investigation into the MUDA scam and to submit its further report on the day of the judgment.
Experts opined that, given the involvement of six prominent counsels who presented their arguments and cited Supreme Court judgments, the bench may take about a week to deliver its judgment.
Counsel Maninder Singh, representing the petitioner Snehamayi Krishna, submitted to the court on Monday that it is imperative for the MUDA scam to be investigated by the CBI or another independent agency to uphold public trust.
He emphasised that when prominent government figures are accused, an independent investigation becomes necessary.
“The entire Cabinet has taken a decision to protect Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in this case,” Singh argued.
“From the outset, the submission has been to hand over the case to the CBI. This matter demands investigation by the CBI or another independent agency. There have been instances where the Supreme Court has directly handed over cases to the CBI,” he added.
Singh further contended that CM Siddaramaiah should have voluntarily welcomed a CBI investigation.
On the other hand, Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty requested the bench to allow more time for presenting arguments against the petition. He also prayed that the matter be taken up later when the court resumes functioning in Bengaluru after the vacation.
However, the bench refused to yield, directing the AG to place the arguments without any delay. The AG requested that counsel Kapil Sibal would appear before the court and sought time.
The bench, however, stated that the arguments could be placed through video conferencing. The AG then submitted that there was a technical issue with the video conferencing, following which the bench directed to fix the issue and place the arguments in the day only.
Senior Counsel Dushyanth Dave appearing for the fourth accused, land owner J. Devaraju in the MUDA case, submitted that his client is not facing criminal charges and, in this background, there is no necessity for the CBI probe. He further submitted that the petition had been filed to embarrass Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
“The petitioner earlier sought the Lokayukta investigation before the court and when the Lokayukta investigation was progressing, he submitted a petition seeking the CBI probe. The court should not waste a single moment over the petition,” he argued. he added that while filing the complaint, the petitioner concealed many facts related to the case.
“The petitioner has concealed the order of mutation and revenue department documents which prove that Devaraju was the owner of the property,” Dave said.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Lokayukta on Monday submitted the status quo investigation report in connection with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam to the High Court Dharwad bench.
Mysuru Lokayukta Superintendent of Police, T.J. Udesh submitted the report in a sealed cover to the court. The court had earlier directed the Lokayukta to submit the report without fail in this regard.
Commenting on the development, Snehamayi Krishna said: “I have full confidence that the case would be handed over to the CBI. The Lokayukta is not conducting the investigation appropriately. We have submitted the evidence and documents to prove that Lokayukta sleuths are colluded with the accused persons in the case.
“In this backdrop and taking the rampant corruption into consideration, based on the evidence and documents submitted in this regard, we are hoping that today the court will hand over the case to the CBI.”
When asked about rumours claiming that CM Siddaramaiah and his wife Parvathi may get a clean chit in the Lokayukta investigation, Snehamayi Krishna stated: “I don’t have official information on this. I got to know through the media. It is impossible to give a clean chit to CM Siddaramaiah. We have provided enough documents to prove charges against him.”
Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a notice to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife B.M. Parvathi, who is the second accused in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam.
The ED has also issued a notice to the Urban Development Minister Byrathi Suresh, the close confidante of CM Siddaramaiah.
Sources reveal that the ED had issued notice to CM’s wife and directed his wife Parvathi to appear before the ED officials on January 28 (Tuesday). Minister Suresh has also been asked to appear before the ED sleuths.
Following this, CM’s wife Parvathi and Minister Suresh have approached the Karnataka High Court questioning the summons issued to them by the ED.
(IANS)
