Governor seeks report on Rs 387 crore works ‘ordered’ by Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has sought a detailed report from the Congress government in connection with Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) allegedly undertaking works worth Rs 387 crore in violation of rules.
A Mysuru local filed a fresh complaint against Siddaramaiah with the Governor on August 27, accusing the Chief Minister of ordering unauthorised work in his constituency of Varuna and Srirangapatna, violating the Karnataka Urban Development Act, 1987.
The complaint claims that projects worth Rs 387 crores were undertaken illegally by MUDA, allegedly under verbal instructions from the Chief Minister.
Based on the complaint, the Governor sought a detailed report from Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh, who in turn sought clarification from the Urban Development Department.
On August 16, the Governor accorded sanction for an investigation against Siddaramaiah in connection with a MUDA site allotment case.
The High Court on September 12 completed its hearing on Siddaramaiah’s petition challenging the legality of Governor Gehlot’s approval for investigation against him in the MUDA site allotment case and reserved its orders.
On August 19, Siddaramaiah moved the High Court challenging the legality of the Governor’s order.
Siddaramaiah is under the scanner over the alleged irregularities in the compensatory land allocation to his wife by the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) during his term as Chief Minister.
The controversy centres on a 3.16-acre parcel of land in Kesaru village owned by Siddaramaiah’s wife, Parvathi. This land was acquired by MUDA for development of a layout and Parvathi was allocated 14 premium sites in Vijayanagar in 2022 as compensation under a 50:50 scheme.
However, activists alleged that the plot allotted to Parvathi had a higher property value as compared to the location of her land that was acquired by MUDA.