3 hours ago
Last Updated: October 16, 2024, 14:47 IST
Karnataka, India
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah (PTI File)
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said the resignation of Marigowda, believed to be a Siddaramaiah confidante, showed that the CM was embroiled in what it described as the "MUDA scam"
K Marigowda, the chairperson of the controversy-hit Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), resigned on Wednesday, triggering a fresh political controversy in Karnataka.
Marigowda said that he had health issues and that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had asked him to quit. According to reports, he was hospitalised last month due to exhaustion-related distress.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said the resignation of Marigowda, believed to be a Siddaramaiah confidante, showed that the CM was embroiled in what it described as the “MUDA scam”.
The Chief Minister faces allegations that compensatory sites were allotted to his wife BM Parvathi 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.
In the last week of September, the Karnataka High Court dismissed Siddaramaiah’s plea challenging Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot’s sanction to prosecute him in the alleged scam. A First Information Report (FIR) has been registered against him by the Karnataka Lokayukta police in connection with the case, on the directions of a special court.
Siddaramaiah has since maintained that he is not afraid of what he calls a “political conspiracy”. He has denied all charges, rejected calls for his resignation, and accused his political rivals of .dragging his family into the controversy.
Amid the row, Siddaramaiah’s wife has returned the 14 compensatory sites that were given to her in the Mysuru upmarket area. Subsequently, MUDA said it would accept the plots back.
