Lokayukta police quiz ex-MUDA Commissioner
Mysuru (PTI): The Lokayukta police probing the MUDA site allotment case on Thursday quizzed its former Commissioner P S Kantharaju, Lokayukta sources said.
Kantharaju was the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) Commissioner for over two years, from September 2017 to November 2019.
Speaking to reporters after coming out from the Lokayukta police office here, the former MUDA Commissioner said he presented all the points pertaining to the issue to the Investigation Officer (IO).
"Back in 2017, it was decided in the Board meeting to return an equal amount of undeveloped land to the land loser. We presented the matter before the MUDA board meeting in December 2017. The issue was related to a consolidated decision of MUDA. The IO asked me about the decision taken on this issue, which I explained," Kantharaju said.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his wife Parvathi B M, brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy and others are accused in the case.
In the MUDA case, it is alleged that compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah's wife in an upmarket area in Mysuru, which had higher property value as compared to the location of her land, which had been allegedly being acquired ‘illegally’ 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.
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.
Karnataka Lokayukta police and the Directorate of Enforcement have launched an investigation into the 'scam'.
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Stalin accuses Centre of trying to use women's quota as 'weapon,' slams EPS over delimitation
Chennai (PTI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has strongly criticised the Centre over the women's reservation and accused it of trying to use it as a "weapon" to tackle the opposition before taking up the delimitation exercise based on population.
"The Union government is not concerned about implementing reservations for women. If their concerns were genuine, they could have done it right away. Rather than doing that, the BJP-led Centre is thinking of using it as a weapon to tackle opposition and take up the delimitation exercise based on population," he told PTI in an interview.
"Hence, the women's reservation must be implemented immediately without showing delimitation as a reason," the DMK president added.
Expressing apprehensions on the proposed delimitation exercise, the CM said it was the DMK that raised the first voice asserting the rights of the state after realising that Tamil Nadu would be affected by the proposed exercise. He also attacked his rival and AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami over the delimitation issue.
Recalling efforts made by the DMK to raise the issue of population-based delimitation, he said an all-party meeting and a meeting of CMs under the auspices of the Joint Action Committee seeking fair delimitation were convened. It sought to freeze delimitation for 25 years and stick to it based on the 1971 Census population.
"We urged the union government that states which successfully implemented population control programmes must not be punished," he added.
The party came up with "Tamil Nadu poradum, Tamil Nadu vellum" (Tamil Nadu will struggle, Tamil Nadu will win) and this is DMK's stand, he said.
"However, Palaniswami, who is seeking votes for the entry of the BJP through the backdoor, has till date been mute over delimitation, and this is a betrayal of the people of Tamil Nadu."
