Siddaramaiah's Co-Accused Questioned By Karnataka Lokayukta In MUDA Land Case, Probe Proceeds After Site Visit

As part of the investigation into the alleged Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam, Karnataka Lokayukta police questioned Mallikarjuna Swamy, brother-in-law of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, in Mysuru on Thursday (10 October).

Swamy, listed as the third accused in the case, appeared at the Lokayukta office alongside J Devaraju, another accused. In August 2004, Swamy purchased a disputed three-acre, 16-gunta land parcel from Devaraju.

By July 2005, the land had been converted for residential use. In 2010, Swamy executed a gift deed, transferring the land to his sister Parvathi, who is married to Siddaramaiah.

Sources indicate that Devaraju submitted a compromise petition in a Mysuru court in 2008, with multiple claimants asserting ownership of the land. The petitioners asked the court to document and confirm the terms of their settlement.

Both Swamy and Devaraju were questioned by Mysuru Lokayukta SP T J Udesh and other officials about the ownership of the land. This inquiry stems from an FIR filed against Siddaramaiah and others on 27 September.

Siddaramaiah is listed as the first accused in the FIR, while his wife Parvathi is the second. Earlier this month, Lokayukta police conducted a site inspection of the land in question.

The investigation began after Karnataka High Court upheld the Governor's prosecution sanction. The controversy involves alleged irregularities in how alternate sites were allocated by MUDA to Parvathi.

After her land was taken over, Parvathi applied for alternative land, and in 2021, MUDA granted her 14 sites in Vijayanagar, Mysuru. Amid the ongoing dispute, Parvathi recently wrote to MUDA, surrendering the allocated sites.