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MUDA 'scam': Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah moves high court over governor nod for prosecution
The move comes as the Congress ramped up its campaign against the opposition BJP, accusing it of using the governor’s office for political vendetta.
Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Monday moved the high court against the governor Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot's decision to grant permission to prosecute him over alleged irregularities in a site allotment by the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), Live Law reported.
The move comes as the Congress ramped up its campaign against the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, accusing it of using the governor’s office for political vendetta.
In response to the escalating situation, Siddaramaiah convened a Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting on August 22 at the Vidhana Soudha conference hall. Karnataka minister for Information Technology and Biotechnology, Priyank Kharge, said the a need to brief party members on the developments, saying, “Since there is a huge uproar about the governor’s role, we need to apprise our people. Ultimately, they are public representatives; 136 MLAs need to know what is happening.”
Similarly, he will visit New Delhi on Tuesday to brief the party’s central leadership, said a party leader, asking not to be named.
The controversy centres on allegations that Siddaramaiah’s wife, Parvathi, was in 2021 improperly allotted compensatory sites in an upscale Mysuru locality under a 50:50 ratio scheme. Critics claim that the property value of the allotted land was significantly higher than that of the land MUDA acquired from her. BJP leaders have suggested that the alleged scam could be worth between ₹4,000 crore and ₹5,000 crore.
In light of the Governor’s sanction, deputy chief minister and KPCC president DK Shivakumar announced state-wide protest rallies scheduled for August 19.
Shivakumar denounced the governor’s decision, describing it as a politically motivated attempt by the BJP to destabilise the Congress-led government in Karnataka. “This is a murder of democracy, and we will protest it. We have instructed our party leaders to carry out peaceful protests and ensure that anti-social elements don’t infiltrate the rallies and create trouble,” he said.
