Karnataka HC adjourns hearing on petition seeking CBI probe in MUDA scam till Jan 27
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka High Court on Wednesday adjourned the hearing into the plea to transfer MUDA scam case to the CBI, till January 27.
Justice M Nagaprasanna who heard the petition filed by activist Snehamayi Krishna seeking a CBI probe into the alleged Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allocation scam directed Lokayukta to submit the investigation report to court by January 27.
Senior Advocate Ravivarma Kumar, Abhishek Manu Singhvi appeared for Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, while Maninder Singh represented the petitioner.
During the argument, Singh alleged that original files are missing from Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA).
The court said, "We will deal with everything. But first the Lokayukta had to give details of everything on record so far. All details of the investigation made so far."
Finally the court directed Lokayukta to submit the investigation report to court by January 27.
In the MUDA case, it is alleged that compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi B M in an upmarket area in Mysuru, which had higher property value as compared to the location of her land which had been "acquired" by the 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.
Karnataka Lokayukta police have booked a case against Siddaramaiah, Parvathi, his brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy and others. Simultaneously, the Directorate of Enforcement have launched an investigation into the alleged scam on Krishna's complaint.
The Chief Minister has denied any wrongdoing in the alleged scam.
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Experience comes when you play bigger teams in bilateral series: Rashid Khan
Chennai (PTI): Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan called for more bilateral series against stronger cricketing nations after his team signed off from the T20 World Cup on a high, defeating Canada in their final group match here on Thursday.
Afghanistan played some exhilarating cricket, going down to South Africa in a gripping second Super Over after the scores were tied, a humdinger that provided one of the early thrills of the World Cup.
However, the spin-bowling stalwart said Afghanistan could make significant strides if they get regular opportunities to compete against stronger cricketing nations.
"Couple of areas to improve, with the batting, the middle order got a bit stuck against the big teams, and then with the bowling the death overs. That comes when you play the bigger teams in bilateral series," said Rashid after his team defeat Canada by 82 runs, with him returning excellent figures of 2 for 19.
The stalwart said the side had arrived well prepared for the tournament and produced some breathtaking cricket, but admitted the narrow defeat to South Africa proved costly and remained a painful setback.
"We were well-prepared (for the tournament), we played some unbelievable cricket. The game against South Africa, that really hurt everyone. We had to win one of those (first two) games and see how the tournament unfolded. We'll take some positive things from this World Cup and look forward," he said.
With head coach Jonathan Trott set to part ways with the team, Rashid described the departure as an "emotional" moment for the side.
"I think we had some wonderful times with him. Where we are now, he played a main role. It's emotional to see him leave us, but that's how life is. We wish him all the best and somewhere down the line we see him again."
Ibrahim Zadran, who was named Player of the Match for his unbeaten 95 off 56 balls, said it was satisfying to finally register a substantial score after two below-par outings.
"I enjoyed it, didn't play better cricket in first two innings, which I expect. Wanted to back my skills, really enjoyed it. Pressure was there, it's there all the time. I want to put myself in pressure situations and enjoy it," said Zadran.
"Wanted to play positive cricket, rotate strike and punish bad ball, create partnerships and this is what I have done."
