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The ED also raided the office and residence of builder Manjunath’s office in connection with the MUDA case, in which Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has been booked.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah (PTI File)
The Enforcement Directorate on Monday undertook fresh searches in connection with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) linked money laundering case in which it has booked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
The ED also conducted a raid at the office of a builder linked with the MUDA case. Builder Manjunath’s house and office were raided by ED officials on Monday. Other raids are currently underway in Bengaluru, Mysuru and Mandya. About seven-eight premises in Bengaluru and Mysuru are being covered, official sources told news agency PTI.
The federal agency had conducted the first round of raids in this case on October 18 when it searched the 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.
The ED has filed a enforcement case information report (ECIR) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to book the CM and others taking cognisance of a Lokayukta FIR.
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 the two probe agencies.
Parvathi was recently questioned by the Lokayukta.
In the MUDA site allotment case, it is alleged that 14 compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah’s wife in an upmarket area in Mysuru (Vijayanagar Layout 3rd and 4th 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 had announced that she was returning the allotted plots to MUDA.
(with PTI inputs)