• Fake bank challans, fake seals used
• Three employees go into hiding, switching off their cell phones
• Complaint lodged at Lakshmipuram Police Station

By S.T. Ravikumar

Mysore/Mysuru: After the revelation of a previous scam involving the use of a forged signature of the transferred Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) Secretary and KAS Officer S. Kusumakumari, to issue a Title Deed for a site, yet another scam worth crores of rupees has come to light within MUDA. This time, fake bank challans and counterfeit MUDA seals were employed to carry out fraudulent activities.

The MUDA Special Tahsildar has officially filed a complaint with the Lakshmipuram Police, implicating five individuals who submitted these fake bank challans as proof of fee payment for Khata transfer in connection with sites in MUDA-approved private layouts.

In response to the filing of this case, three MUDA employees, believed to be associated with the accused, have reportedly gone into hiding. The five accused individuals are: Mohankumar of M.L. Hundi, Gaali Ananda Reddy of Shyadanahalli, R. Yogesh Prasad of Hebbal, U.R. Girish of Nazarbad and C.S. Venugopal of Mahalakshmi Layout in Bengaluru.

Mohankumar of M.L. Hundi in T. Narasipur taluk is accused of submitting a fake bank challan for Rs. 8,050 for Khata transfer of Site No. 1870, formed by the Police Housing Co-operative Society in Lalithadripura. Similarly, Gaali Ananda Reddy of Shyadanahalli submitted a fake bank challan for Rs. 8,270 for the Khata transfer of Site No. 310 in Shyadanahalli.

R. Yogesh of Hebbal is accused of presenting a fake bank challan for Rs. 8,800 and U.R. Girish of Nazarbad is implicated for a fake bank challan of Rs.16,899 and C.D. Venugopal of Bengaluru for a counterfeit bank challan of Rs. 40,950 concerning Khata transfer of Site No. 29 in Madagalli, Mysuru taluk.

These individuals submitted Bank of Baroda challans along with photocopies of other necessary documents to MUDA to initiate Khata transfers. Based on these submitted challans, MUDA granted Khata transfers. However, during an inspection of the MUDA Accounts section, it was discovered that the challan amounts had not been credited to the MUDA bank account and that the challans bore fake bank seals.

Police complaint lodged

Following these revelations and under the directives of MUDA Commissioner G.T. Dinesh Kumar and Secretary G.D. Shekar, MUDA Special Tahsildar R. Shivakumar, has lodged a formal complaint with the Lakshmipuram Police.

The complaint also notes that such fraudulent cases may have occurred at the Office of MUDA Zone-6 Special Tahsildar H.P. Raviprasad and action is urged against the culprits there as well.

These scams have raised suspicions regarding the involvement of case workers, Zonal Officers, Special Tahsildars and Office Superintendents in the fraud, particularly given that such fraudulent practices may have persisted for years, resulting in substantial financial losses for MUDA. This suspicion is bolstered by concerns about dubious bank credits discovered during yearly audits in recent years.

Officers go into hiding

As the scam came to light, three MUDA employees quickly went into hiding, switching off their cell phones. This has been documented in the complaint filed by Special Tahsildar Shivakumar. Now, it is the responsibility of the Police to act on the complaint and identify those responsible for this scam, including those behind the creation of fake bank challans and cash-paid seals.

MUDA officials suspect that a network involved in producing counterfeit seals and signatures may be behind these fraudulent activities. Despite the presence of CCTV cameras throughout MUDA to ensure transparency in operations, officials are puzzled as to how middlemen and agents could exert influence on case workers and their superiors in matters related to land allotment, alternative sites, plan approval, issuance of Title Deeds, Khata Transfer and registration, among other things.

While the fake challan scam has been exposed, there are speculations that similar fraudulent activities may have occurred in other sections of MUDA, including e-Khata, TPM, site allotment, engineering, land acquisition and accounts, among others.

Special team formed to scrutinise cash credits

Following the revelation of the fake bank challan scam, the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) has promptly established a special team comprising four officials to thoroughly review the records in the MUDA accounts section.

MUDA Commissioner G.T. Dinesh Kumar issued a notification regarding this on Wednesday. The team consists of four officials: Town Planner member R. Sesha, Chief Accounts Officer N. Mutta, MUDA Secretary G.D. Shekar and Executive Engineer (South) K.R. Mahesh.

The team has been tasked with submitting a report within a fortnight after conducting a comprehensive examination of all records, including map and plan approvals, the issuance of Completion Reports (CR), occupancy certificates, Khata registration and transfers, issuance of title deeds and more.

Additionally, the team is responsible for verifying all bank challans and payments of stipulated fees/charges made by the public for obtaining certificates and records from January 1, 2023, up to the present.

Taking swift action, the team has already commenced the verification of documents and records related to the credits made by the Bank of Baroda to MUDA’s account, starting earnestly since yesterday afternoon. It has been reported that the team will also scrutinise all the Bank challans credited to MUDA’s account over the past four to five years.