Karnataka: ED questions former MUDA commissioner in money laundering case
Bengaluru, Oct 29: The Enforcement Directorate Tuesday questioned D B Natesh, a former Commissioner of the MUDA, in connection with a money laundering case in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority in which it has booked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his family and others, official sources said.
The federal agency had raided the premises of Natesh and another former MUDA Commissioner G T Dinesh Kumar on Monday as it covered 7-8 premises in Bengaluru and Mysuru while conducting fresh searches in the case.
Sources said the ED is recording the statement of Natesh at its office here while it has asked Kumar to join the investigation. He was not found at his premises during the Monday raids, the sources said.
An alleged close aide of the CM, Rakesh Papanna, and a builder named Manjunath was also searched by the ED.
ALSO READ: Waqf land controversy: No farmer will be evicted, says Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah
Social activist and complainant in this case, Snehamayi Krishna, on Monday said he has handed over 'video evidence' to ED in support of his complaint.
The federal agency conducted the first round of raids in this case on October 18 when it searched the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) office in Mysuru and some other locations.
It also questioned some lower-rank officials of the MUDA at its Bengaluru zonal office last week.
Taking cognisance of a Lokayukta FIR, the ED has filed an enforcement case information report (ECIR) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to book the Karnataka chief minister and others.
Siddaramaiah is facing Lokayukta and ED probes into alleged irregularities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife by the MUDA.
Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi B M, brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy, Devaraju -- from whom Mallikarjuna Swamy purchased land and gifted it to Parvathi -- and others are named as other accused in the case by two probe agencies.
Parvathi was recently questioned by the Lokayukta Police in Mysuru.
It is alleged that 14 compensatory sites were allotted to Parvathi in an upmarket area in Mysuru (Vijayanagar Layout third and fourth stages), which had higher property value as compared to the location of her land which had been "acquired" by MUDA.
The MUDA had allotted plots to Parvathi under a 50:50 ratio scheme in lieu of 3.16 acres of her land, where it developed a residential layout.
Under the controversial scheme, MUDA allotted 50 per cent of developed land to the land losers in lieu of undeveloped land acquired from them for forming residential layouts.
It is alleged that Parvathi had no legal title over this 3.16 acres of land at survey number 464 of Kasare village, Kasaba Hobli of Mysuru taluk.
After the controversy broke out, Parvathi announced that she was returning the allotted plots to MUDA.
The chief minister 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.
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Gujarat: Mevani demands collector’s suspension over ‘anti-Dalit’ remark; IAS officer rejects charge
Mahnisagar, Oct 30: Gujarat Congress MLA Jignesh Mevani on Wednesday demanded the suspension of Mahisagar District Collector Neha Kumari, accusing her of making anti-Dalit comments, a charge the bureaucrat rejected.
Mevani’s demand comes a week after he sought similar action against senior IPS officer Rajkumar Pandian for allegedly misbehaving with him and one of his party colleagues.
Mevani targeted Kumari citing a purported video in which she was heard saying that 90 per cent of cases registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, or the Atrocities Act, are used for blackmailing.
The IAS officer termed the lawmaker’s claims “baseless” and an unsuccessful attempt to get political mileage.
Mevani visited Lunawada, the district headquarters, and demanded that an FIR be registered against the collector under the Atrocities Act and that she was suspended over her “insensitive” remarks and “unparliamentary” words.
When one Vijay Parmar went to meet the collector with his grievance at the SWAGAT programme on October 23, she used “unparliamentary” words against him and also insulted the lawyer community by saying they should be “slapped with slippers”, the Vadgam MLA told reporters.
SWAGAT is an initiative of the Gujarat government for the redressal of people’s grievances.
According to Mevani, the collector’s claim that 90 per cent of cases under the Atrocities Act are misused for blackmailing is an insult to the SC and ST communities and amounts to an offence under the Atrocities Act and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
“We demand Kumari's suspension and that a case be registered against her,” he said.
The district collector called the MLA’s allegations a “political stunt”.
“The man whom the MLA called poor, innocent young friend (Vijay Parmar) has a police case against him, and his brother has more than one case of rape, kidnapping and assault against him,” Kumari said, adding that they keep visiting the collector’s office with grievances.
At the SWAGAT programme on October 23, he pressured the collector to file a case against police officers. When the collector told him that she did not have the power to file a case and that he should approach the superintendent of police (SP) or the court, he continued to pester her over his issue, she said.
He even threatened the officers and told the collector that she was a Brahmin and he would let her know what “section 4 of the Atrocities Act entailed”, she said.
“You can understand the direction in which this MLA wants to take law and order by keeping a person with a criminal history along with him even when the state government is sensitive about children and women,” she said.
The collector said that the way Vijay Parmar is “blackmailing” government employees in the name of the Atrocities Act is not at all right. “The MLA's support to such people makes it difficult for the real complainants and the real victims to get justice,” she said.
Last week, Congress leaders and Dalit community members gathered outside the office of the Director General of Police in the state capital Gandhinagar demanding the suspension of senior IPS officer Rajkumar Pandian over his alleged misbehaviour with Mevani and his party colleague.
