Case shifted to Special Court for Peoples Representatives

Mysuru: The case against former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddharamaiah, on alleged illegal construction of house and misuse of Government Office has been shifted to the Special Court for People’s Representatives, Bengaluru, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Yashwanth Kumar said in his order.

The Lakshmipuram Police had registered an FIR against Siddharamaiah and Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) former chiefs C. Basavegowda and D. Dhruvakumar and MUDA Commissioner P.S. Kantharaj in connection with a land grabbing case.

Earlier, the Police had submitted a ‘B’ Report in the case. But, later, they registered an FIR?under IPC Sections 120B, 197, 166, 167, 169, 200, 417, 409, 420 and 468 following the directions by the Principal Senior Civil Judge.

The Court had directed the Police to register an FIR, based on a petition filed by advocate N. Gangaraju to the Governor in May 2018, seeking sanction to prosecute Siddharamaiah. The Governor’s Office cleared it, saying that permission was not required for prosecution. Gangaraju alleged that Siddharamaiah had used his influence to secure all clearances necessary for the piece of land, in violation of MUDA rules.

The City Improvement Trust Board (CITB), the predecessor of MUDA, had acquired 535 acres of land under Hinkal GP to develop Vijayanagar II Stage in 1981. In 1997, after the completion of the site distribution process, the then GP President Papanna, his relatives Sakamma, Annaiah and Sunanda had applied to MUDA to denotify 30 guntas of their land.

Accordingly, MUDA denotified the land. The process was completed within 20 days when Basavegowda was MUDA Chairman. Later, Siddharamaiah, when he was the Deputy CM in J.H. Patel Government, purchased 10 guntas of the land belonging to Annaiah and constructed a house on a land measuring 120X75 ft in dimension.

The MUDA issued a No Objection Certificate and also approved the house plan and in 2013, Siddharamaiah sold the house.

On May 10, Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Yashwanth Kumar, based on a submission made by the advocate of the complainant, transferred the case to the Special Court in Bengaluru. “In view of the same, the entire records of this case shall be forwarded to the Special Court in Bengaluru dealing with the matters pertaining to the people’s representatives forthwith. The complainant is directed to appear before the said court on June 10, 2019,” the order said.