Bengaluru/New Delhi, Oct 18 (PTI) The ED on Friday raided the MUDA office in connection with corruption case in the land allotments involving Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, raising the political temperature in the Congress-ruled state with a party leader terming the action “politically motivated” and the opposition BJP and JD(S) welcoming the raids.
The Central probe agency officials, with a CRPF security team, raided the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) office in Mysuru, its Tehsil office, and the premises of an accused in the case, Devaraju, at Kengeri in Bengaluru. According to sources, no premises of the chief minister or his family were searched.
Sources said the searches were launched after the agency sent multiple communications to MUDA seeking answers to more than three dozen questions about land acquisition and allotment policies but did not get a “satisfactory” reply.
The agency also recorded the statement of Devaraju, from whom the family of the CM had purchased the lands, during the searches, the sources said.
The ED, till late evening, made copies of several documents as it was in the process of identifying those that would be seized.
“ED probe team has come, we will provide whatever information they ask,” MUDA Secretary Prasanna Kumar told reporters in Mysuru. “They have said that they will work here today and tomorrow. Whoever from staff they may want (to meet), we will call them and provide them the information,” he said.
On September 30, the ED filed an enforcement case information report (ECIR) to book the CM and others taking cognizance of a Lokayukta FIR.
The CM is facing allegations of illegalities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife B M Parvathi by the MUDA.
Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress chief D K Shivakumar said the ED action was only an exercise to gather information, collect documents related to the case and verify them.
“ED can gather information. Why do you call it a raid? They may be seeking documents, which can be provided. Where is injustice in that?” Shivakumar told reporters here.
His brother and former Congress MP, D K Suresh, termed it a “politically-motivated raid” in connection with a “politically-motivated case.” Welcoming the ED raids, the opposition BJP and JD(S) in Karnataka claimed that it was necessary to unearth the “scam” and to bring out the truth.
Leaders from the two parties argued that a fair probe into the case was not possible by the Lokayukta police, who work under the State government.
Terming the MUDA case as the “worst scam” by usurping government land, Union Minister and JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy said: “Let’s see what comes out from the ED probe.” Siddaramaiah, his wife, brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy and Devaraju — from whom Swamy had purchased land and gifted it to Parvathi — and others have been named in the FIR registered by the Lokayukta police on September 27. The CM had denied any wrongdoing by him or his family, saying the opposition was “scared” of him and had noted that it was the first such “political case” against him.
Meanwhile, state Urban Development Minister Suresha B S (Byrathi Suresh) said the MUDA would provide all documents to the ED as sought by it.
“Whatever documents are sought, MUDA will give….ED is said to have got powers to raid after ECIR is booked (against the CM), whatever documents they ask MUDA will give, there is no question of us getting involved in this, officials will provide documents,” Suresh said. MUDA is under his ministry. PTI NES KSU GMS NES PYK PYK
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