The Enforcement Directorate(ED) has reportedly summoned six employees related to infamous Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam in Karnataka on Friday.
The probe agency’s move comes days after it had filed a money-laundering case against Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others, following a recent FIR by the state Lokayukta related to the MUDA that has seen the senior Congress leader in trouble.
As per various reports, these employees have been summoned on different dates for the interrogation, which is scheduled to take place at the ED's Bengaluru office.
Reportedly, the employees summoned by ED have also been directed to bring documents related to the case.
The probe agency’s case is focused on uncovering evidence linked to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others including Siddaramiah's wife BM Parvathi, brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy, and Devaraju.
What is MUDA scam?
On September 30 this year, the ED filed an enforcement case information report (ECIR) to book the CM Siddaramiah and others taking cognisance of a recent Lokayukta FIR.
It is alleged that in the MUDA site allotment case, 14 compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah's wife in an upmarket area in Mysuru (Vijayanagar Layout 3rd and 4th stages), which had higher property value as compared to the location of her land which had been "acquired" by 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 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 CM files appeal before HC: Meanwhile, Siddaramaiah has filed an appeal before the division bench of the High Court, challenging the decision of a single judge bench in connection with the MUDA site allotment case that had come as a setback to him.
The bench of Justice M Nagaprasanna had on September 24 dismissed the CM's petition challenging Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot's approval for a probe against him in the case, observing that the gubernatorial order nowhere "suffers from want of application of mind".
