• MCC Commissioner dismisses B.K. Kumar from service on Nov. 6, 2024
• Employed on a contract basis at MCC and MUDA since 2004.
• Owns bungalow, properties worth crores of rupees.
• Provided a list of 8,000 sites facilitating illegal approvals.
• Benefitted influential persons, officers, intermediaries.
• Accessed MUDA records room to retrieve documents.

Mysuru: Shocking details have emerged from the corridors of the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) and Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) about a person believed to be the kingpin of the massive corruption involving the allocation of thousands of MUDA sites to unauthorised individuals.

Remarkably, this individual was working in both MCC and MUDA, drawing double salaries for the past 20 years and amassing significant wealth through his illegal dealings.

Only now action has been taken, with MCC Commissioner Ashaad-Ur-Rehman Shariff dismissing him from service for his double duty and unlawful activities.

The person in question is B.K. Kumar. The Commissioner is also preparing to file a criminal case against him. Kumar was working as a Second Division Assistant (under equal pay for equal work scheme) at the Vani Vilas sewage treatment plant of the Water Supply and Underground Drainage Division wing of the MCC. Simultaneously he was also employed as an outsourced worker (contractual) at the MUDA, performing both roles and drawing salaries from both positions, which constitutes a gross legal violation. The MCC Commissioner has indicated in an official notification issued on Nov. 6, 2024, that measures have been taken to file a criminal case against him.

Kumar, originally from Bevinakuppe village in Pandavapura Taluk, joined the MCC in 2004 based on a ‘piece work’ scheme, filling positions left vacant due to the retirement or resignation of some MCC employees. He managed to secure the job under the ‘equal pay for equal work’ category.

At the same time, with the support of certain politicians, influential figures and officials who were close to him, Kumar also worked as a Second Division Assistant on a contractual basis at the Office of the Chief Accounts Officer of MUDA.

Inquiry committee report

Following complaints that Kumar was receiving salaries from both positions simultaneously, an inquiry committee was formed. The committee’s report, submitted on Oct. 22, 2024, confirmed that Kumar had indeed been working at both places and drawing two separate salaries each month.

The report also stated that it was against labour laws for an individual to hold positions in two Government offices simultaneously. Consequently, the MCC Commissioner, while keeping pending the filing of a criminal case, issued an order dismissing Kumar from service with immediate effect.

According to the report submitted by the committee, a review of personal information and documents provided by both the MCC and MUDA offices confirmed that the name, father’s name and Aadhaar number all belonged to Kumar.

It was also found that MUDA had specified a condition prohibiting employees from working elsewhere when they were involved in calling tenders. Therefore, Kumar’s act of working and receiving salaries from both offices was deemed a violation of the law. The committee noted that appropriate action could be taken regarding this matter.

Kingpin of MUDA site scam

Kumar, who worked as a Second Division Assistant at MUDA, was known to be very close to previous MUDA Commissioners. Acting under their directives, Kumar was reportedly the only person who could directly access and retrieve important files from the office records room (there was restricted access for others), the Special Land Acquisition Office, the MUDA Secretary’s Office, all nine zone offices, the Accounts Department and the Special Tahsildar’s Office. This information has been revealed to Star of Mysore by sources within the MUDA office.

Sources said that Kumar was supported by influential politicians and officials in the MCC and MUDA to carry out his work without any interruption or any sort of questioning. As if to repay their favour, he provided them sites, land documents and was assisting them to get approval for sites in prestigious neighbourhoods under the 50:50 ratio.

Born to a farming family

As a result, Kumar was earning far beyond expectations. It is also said that this ordinary Second Division Assistant built a massive house at Vijayanagar Second Stage in Mysuru, sources added. Kumar, born into an ordinary farming family, studied until PUC and learned typing at a commerce institute in Pandavapura.

After he got a job at the MCC, he proudly informed everyone in his village and used to dress like an officer. Within a few months, he rented a house in Mysuru.

According to Kumar’s classmates at his village, during festivals and holidays, when he would visit Bevinakuppe, he would bring along influential politicians from Mysuru, showing the villagers that he was in contact with prominent figures.

Just a few years later, seeing his income and luxurious lifestyle, the villagers were left astonished. It is said that Kumar would tell the villagers that he had amassed significant wealth in Mysuru.

Had become influential

Due to the senior officials of the organisations (MCC and MUDA) supporting him in such a way, Kumar, who was just a Second Division Assistant, had become powerful in the MUDA office, and everyone hesitated to speak against him fearing consequences. They, however, approached him quietly to get their work done.

Although some political figures in Mysuru knew that Kumar was working for both MCC and MUDA and was the kingpin behind the 50:50 land allocation scam, they still carried out their tasks without saying a word against him.

However, it is worth remembering that one MLC had written a letter to the State Government seeking disciplinary action against Kumar.

Owns assets worth crores

According to sources in MUDA and MCC, Kumar was directly involved in the 50:50 ratio land allocations, bill payments in the accounts section and other processes at both MUDA and MCC offices. Through his dealings and influence, he amassed assets worth crores of rupees. Although he seems to be an ordinary person in appearance, the way he accumulated such vast wealth is astonishing, sources point out.

The talk now circulating in the MUDA office is how, as a Second Division Assistant working on a contract basis, Kumar was able to amass such wealth in a short period, while even the high-level officers themselves lead modest lives.

Had a list of 8,000 sites

Sources said that kingpin B.K. Kumar had in his possession a list that contained information about around 8,000 vacant MUDA sites across Mysuru city which was meticulously prepared by former MUDA Commissioner P.S. Kantharaju, and former MUDA Secretary M.K. Savitha. Kantharaju and Savitha had prepared the list after months of physical inspections and hard work to bring additional income to MUDA.

Using the list, Kumar would provide information, along with supplementary documents to the Commissioners who came after Kantharaju. Sources reveal that due to Kumar’s ‘dedication’ and knowledge of sites, the commissioners granted him full authority at the MUDA office, allowing him to directly approach any department and retrieve the needed documents.

B.K. Kumar in ED custody?

Has the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested B.K. Kumar, the purported kingpin of the MUDA 50:50 scam, for violating the law? Yes, according to reports from Bengaluru and sources.

While serving at MUDA, Kumar provided information about vacant sites and necessary documents for approvals to the previous commissioners. In connection with this, ED officials have gathered information from both the MUDA and MCC offices, sources said.

Sources revealed that just four days ago, ED officials took Kumar from his residence in Vijayanagar Second Stage and began their interrogation. During the ED raid on MUDA recently, other employees had told the ED regarding Kumar’s misconduct, prompting the ED to discreetly gather detailed information about him.

Based on this, the ED took him into custody and is now subjecting him to intense interrogation in Bengaluru, sources said. It is also reported that Kumar has been unreachable by mobile phone for the past week, and even the influential politicians who had been assisting him are unable to contact him.