She ran from pillar to post for her small site while MUDA was busy illegally allotting sites worth crores of rupees under the 50:50 allotment scheme

Mysore/Mysuru: In a shocking development that has come to light now, Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) officers, already embroiled in controversy over allocation of approximately 4,500 plots under contentious 50:50 scheme in 23 villages, have denied a site to widow of an Army soldier who was killed in the Pulwama bomb blast in Kashmir.

His wife was handed a note indicating that her case would only be considered in the next allotment round, a move that has been met with widespread outrage. This callous treatment of a fallen soldier’s wife raises grave concerns about integrity and credibility of MUDA officials. That “next allotment round” has not come even after five years.

Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) 82 Battalion soldier H. Guru (No. 115050445) was martyred on Feb. 14, 2019, in an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) blast set by terrorists in Lethpur of Pulwama, Kashmir.

In recognition of his sacrifice, the Kendriya Sainik Board, Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare & Rehabilitation, Bengaluru, recommended a free site for his wife, S. Kalavathi, a resident of Maddur Taluk in Mandya, to build a home. Kalavathi is the native of a village near Kanakapura.

Officials ignore plea

Following the Board’s written recommendation, Kalavathi applied for a MUDA site as directed. Despite her repeated visits to the MUDA Office and meetings, officials avoided addressing her request. Without an alternative, she wrote a letter to the MUDA Commissioner on 11.10.2021 and on June 6, 2022, attaching all necessary documents and urging for prompt resolution. With no response, she sent another letter on June 29, 2022, again seeking the site.

By neglecting her request, MUDA officials disregarded a Government order from 2000 mandating that Urban Development Authorities across the State allocate free sites to the dependents of soldiers and officers who sacrifice their lives for the nation.

According to the order, dependents of commissioned officers who die in battle or similar circumstances are entitled to a 40×60 site, while those of non-commissioned officers are to receive a 30×40 site. A similar order was passed by the Central Government in 1971.

Sainik Board intervenes

Based on Kalavathi’s appeal, on Jan. 29, 2020, Brigadier (Retd.) Ravi Muniswamy, Director of the Kendriya Sainik Board, Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare and Rehabilitation, Bengaluru, sent a letter to the MUDA Commissioner urging the official to honour S. Kalavathi’s request for a free site, given her eligibility.

The Director also requested a response detailing the action taken on the letter. Despite this official correspondence, Kalavathi’s request remained unresolved.

After numerous follow-ups, on July 13, 2022, the Zone 4 Special Tahsildar sent a letter to S. Kalavathi seeking a comprehensive set of documents, including late Guru’s pension records, her pension eligibility, service record, death certificate, details of surviving family members, residential proof, an affidavit affirming she does not own any other site, identity documents and Aadhaar Card. Kalavathi provided all the required documents, and on Oct. 31, 2022, the MUDA Zone 4 Special Tahsildar noted in the file that Kalavathi’s application for a free site would be prioritised in the next site allocation. That next site allocation never happened.

Despite this assurance, Kalavathi is yet to receive a MUDA site, even as MUDA Officers continued to allocate thousands of sites under 50:50 ratio scheme. Indeed a case of criminal negligence and dereliction of duty. Is there no accountability to this kind of government officials?, is what the victim is asking.

Heartless MUDA officials

This inhuman official behaviour should remind our readers and the Government officials about the fate of Kargil War widows. A 31-storey apartment complex, called the Adarsh Housing Society, was built in Colaba in South Mumbai for 1999 Kargil war heroes and war widows. In 2010, it was revealed that politicians, the bureaucracy and military officials colluded to violate rules concerning land ownership and other norms to get flats allotted to themselves and their relatives. Alas, the Kargil war heroes and war widows got nothing. Can one be so merciless, even cruel, to those who gave their lives for our country? This MUDA case too is a point of serious concern. In the case of Adarsh Housing Society, Mumbai, the then Chief Minister Ashok Chavan had to resign. In case of Karnataka, sadly no heads roll.—Ed

‘MUDA has been unfair’

My husband served the CRPF for eight years and I lost him just 10 months after our marriage. I have no children. Despite multiple visits to the MUDA Office and several meetings with the Commissioner, my request has not been addressed. If a soldier who sacrificed his life for the nation is treated so unjustly, what value is placed on his sacrifice? MUDA’s handling of this genuine situation is deeply unfair. — S. Kalavathi, wife of Guru, martyred soldier