The Karnataka authorities is mulling cancellation of a controversial 50:50 land allotment scheme of the Mysore City Growth Authority (MUDA), which was halted in October 2023 after allegations of irregularities, the federal government and members of the ruling Congress occasion have indicated in current weeks.
The MUDA land compensation scheme is on the centre of an issue after Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah’s household has been accused of benefiting to the tune of Rs 56 crore. Beneath the scheme, 50 per cent of land in developed areas of Mysore was granted to land losers in change for 50 per cent of land wrongly acquired by MUDA in under-developed areas of the town.
The Chief Minister’s spouse was granted 14 excessive worth MUDA housing websites within the developed Vijayanagar space of Mysore in 2021 (throughout the BJP regime) in change for 3.16 acres of low worth land that was gifted to her by her brother within the Kesare village exterior Mysore.
Siddaramaiah’s spouse B Parvathi returned the 14 housing websites to MUDA in September this yr after the Karnataka HC allowed the submitting of a corruption case in opposition to the CM, regardless of denials by Siddaramaiah of taking part in any function within the allotments.
The Karnataka Lokayukta police are investigating a case of corruption registered in opposition to the CM on September 27 over the 50:50 land allotments to his spouse. The Enforcement Directorate can be investigating a case of cash laundering within the matter.
“With the scheme making a political controversy, the Congress authorities and MUDA are contemplating cancelling the 50:50 scheme in its entirety,” stated an official supply.
The federal government is prone to rethink all allotments after the conclusion of an inquiry into the scheme by a one-man fee headed by retired Karnataka Excessive Court docket decide Justice P N Desai.
Numerous views on cancelling scheme
On November 1, Social Welfare Minister H C Mahadevappa, the Congress minister in-charge of Mysuru area, indicated at a press convention that the state will “not hesitate in cancelling any 50:50 scheme land allotment discovered to be unlawful”.
The primary assembly of MUDA was held on Thursday after a niche of 10 months and it was presided over by Mysore Deputy Commissioner G Lakshmikanth Reddy, the newly appointed interim chairman of the company. Through the assembly some Congress MLAs additionally steered the cancellation of the 50:50 scheme.
Ok Harish Gowda, the Congress MLA from the Mysuru area, stated MUDA should bear a corruption clean-up and has known as for the cancellation of the 50:50 scheme, which was misused by officers.
Earlier the BJP MLA from Mysore T S Srivatsa wrote to CM Siddaramaiah for the cancellation of all the MUDA land allotments. The CM has forwarded the letter to the state City Growth Division.
One other BJP MLA G T Deve Gowda who’s among the many beneficiaries of the 50:50 scheme has nonetheless suggested the federal government that solely allotments discovered to be blatantly unlawful beneath the 50:50 scheme should be cancelled as it might in any other case erode public belief in MUDA schemes.
Karnataka authorities has dallied on the scheme
Regardless of a number of letters from the Mysuru deputy commissioner by the tenure of the BJP and Congress in 2023, calling out the 50:50 various land compensation scheme for misuse and illegality, the Congress authorities lastly stopped the scheme solely in October 2023.
The Congress authorities additionally didn’t transfer to retrospectively cancel 1,328 allotments, with beneficiaries reducing throughout political events and outstanding non secular/instructional establishments. After deciding to halt the scheme in October 2023, the federal government solely cancelled the scheme prospectively.
There are allegations that individuals who didn’t lose land in Mysuru have been additionally given excessive worth alternate websites beneath the scheme and it started being abused by realtors and politicians.
After a decision in October 2020 the alternate web site scheme was drafted on November 20, 2020 by MUDA members, together with the chairman and commissioner for distributing websites to land losers on a 50:50 ratio foundation – 50 per cent of a developed space in change for 50 per cent of the land acquired by MUDA.
The MUDA was warned in opposition to implementing the scheme on Could 4, 2021 and March 14, 2023 by the state city growth division however didn’t cease the scheme.
Based on the division, 1,328 alternate websites have been given as compensation. There are 125 allotments within the scheme in the identical Vijayanagar space the place Parvathi acquired an allotment.
MUDA is a physique created beneath the City Growth Authority Act of 1987 and the 50:50 various land allotment scheme was launched in 2020 beneath the Karnataka City Growth Authorities (Disposal of Plots in Lieu of Compensation for Land Acquisition) Guidelines, 1991 as an alternative of a beforehand present land for land scheme.
The decision handed by MUDA on October 13, 2020 for grant of land on the price of fifty:50 is an unlawful decision beneath Part 67 of the Karnataka City Growth Authorities Act-1987, city growth officers have said, resulting in its closing cancellation on October 27, 2023.
The MUDA resolutions of 2020, which facilitated the 50:50 land compensation scheme, have been authorised at conferences attended by native Mysuru legislators reducing throughout occasion traces like G T Deve Gowda of the Janata Dal (S), S A Ramdas of the BJP who have been the members of MUDA.
Beneficiaries throughout events
Based on official information, JD(S) MLA G T Devegowda has acquired websites in change for two.25 acres of land in Iranagar and 1 acre in Madagalli villages respectively beneath the controversial scheme.
JD(S) MLA Sa Ra Mahesh has acquired MUDA websites in change for 0.09 acres in Dattagalli village and a pair of.11 acres in Bogadi village. One other JDS legislator from Mysuru C N Manjegowda has acquired alternate websites in change for one acre of land in Hinkal, 2.25 acres in Devanur, and 4.15 acres in Kesare villages.
BJP legislator and former Congress chief H Vishwanath has acquired MUDA websites in change for 0.05 acres within the Belavath village, whereas BJP chief U S Shekhar has acquired websites in compensation for 1.26 acres acquired within the Nachenahalli village.
Amongst others who’ve benefitted from the scheme are the celebrated Lingayat instructional establishment JSS, which has acquired websites in change for 4.34 acres in Kuppalur, and the Vokkaliga Belief generally known as BGS, which has acquired websites for 0.11 acre in Malavadi.
As per present legal guidelines, various plots can’t be offered to land losers in developed areas however solely within the place the place they’ve misplaced land.
A judicial fee headed by retired Karnataka HC decide P N Desai constituted on July 14 and a panel headed by a serving IAS officer Venkatachalapathy have been tasked by the Congress authorities with discovering all illegalities which have occurred beneath the 50:50 land allotment scheme that was began throughout the tenure of the BJP authorities in Karnataka.
