Decode Politics: The case against Siddaramaiah and what happens next

While the court’s determination is simply a setback for the CM, the Congress has already indicated that it volition let the ineligible conflict successful the lawsuit to tally its afloat ineligible course. The Congress has projected the cases sought to beryllium filed against Siddaramaiah implicit the MUDA allotments arsenic being portion of a conspiracy by the BJP, the main Opposition party, to dislodge non-BJP CMs crossed the state by assorted means.

The Congress apical enactment — Leader of the Opposition successful the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and enactment president Mallikarjun Kharge — has not yet commented connected the matter, suggesting that they person reserved their verdict connected a alteration of defender successful Karnataka implicit the MUDA controversy.

Karnataka Deputy CM and authorities Congress president D K Shivakumar, a imaginable replacement for Siddaramaiah successful the lawsuit of his forced exit, connected Tuesday said the enactment “stands with Siddaramaiah” and the “filing of cases is simply a conspiracy of the BJP against Opposition leaders crossed the country”.

The CM successful his archetypal absorption said helium would research further ineligible options aft consulting his advisors and enactment colleagues. He stood connected a technicality that the tribunal had lone allowed the commencement of a probe against him and not approved the prosecution authorisation that had besides been granted by the Governor.

Unless the Congress takes a precocious ethical basal that the CM cannot proceed if an FIR is registered against him, Siddaramaiah, considered 1 of the apical Backward Class leaders successful Karnataka, is expected to beryllium allowed to wage a ineligible battle. In 2010, the past Maharashtra CM Ashok Chavan was asked to measurement down by the enactment connected motivation grounds implicit allegations that 3 of his relatives were beneficiaries of level allotments successful the Adarsh lodging scam.

The communicative successful modern authorities wherever agencies and institutions are seen arsenic being utilized to settee scores with rivals oregon gully them into the BJP is besides expected to favour Siddaramaiah.

What are the allegations against Siddaramaiah successful the alleged MUDA onshore scam?

Siddaramaiah faces 3 circumstantial allegations that are mostly circumstantial and not supported by documentary evidence.

1. The archetypal ownership of a 3.16 acre of onshore that was talented to Siddaramaiah’s woman Parvathi by her member B M Mallikarjun successful 2010. It was successful speech for this onshore MUDA allegedly acquired illegally astir 2013 that Parvathi was fixed 14 lodging sites successful Mysuru successful 2021.

Siddaramaiah has said it is far-fetched to link him to his brother-in-law’s determination to bargain the onshore and acquisition it to Parvathi and his wife’s determination to question compensation for wrongful MUDA acquisition.

2. The 2nd allegation is that MUDA’s 50:50 strategy nether which Parvathi was granted the 14 lodging plots successful a developed MUDA locality was tailored by Siddaramaiah during his CM tenure from 2013 to 2018 though MUDA adopted it arsenic a solution successful 2020 by erstwhile the BJP was successful power.

It is besides alleged that MUDA decided to assistance the 14 plots arsenic compensation connected December 30, 2021, aft a gathering attended by Siddaramaiah’s lad Yathindra, a section Mysuru MLA from 2018 to 2023. But the Congress has said Yathindra was not the lone 1 astatine the meeting. There were different MLAs from the party, the JD(S), and the BJP too, it added.

MUDA concluded it committed a mistake successful acquiring the 3.16-acre crippled and decided Parvathi should beryllium fixed alternate onshore successful a developed locality nether the 50:50 scheme. “My woman made a petition for allotment of alternate onshore arsenic compensation for the incorrect acquisition of her onshore by MUDA erstwhile I was the CM successful 2014 but I told her that it would beryllium incorrect for maine to determine erstwhile I americium the CM,” Siddaramaiah has said.

3. The 3rd allegation is concerning the worth of the exchanged land. One of the activists, T J Abraham, has that the authorities exchequer mislaid Rs 55.8 crore due to the fact that of this transaction.

While the 3.16 acre “wrongly acquired” crippled is officially estimated to outgo astir Rs 3.5 crore, the 14 plots are estimated to outgo Rs 8.5 crore arsenic per authoritative guidance value. According to the activists, the marketplace worth of the alternate sites fixed to Parvathi is estimated to beryllium Rs 55.8 crore.

What did the Karnataka Governor do?

Based connected the petitions that the activists filed betwixt July 15 and August 16 for support to record cases against the CM for probe nether Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and Section 218 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, the Governor granted the aforesaid connected August 16.

What happened aft the Governor’s decision?

After the allegations emerged successful June, the government, connected July 1, ordered an enquiry by an IAS officer. On July 14, up of the Assembly session, arsenic the Opposition started raising the matter, a one-man judicial committee headed by retired High Court justice P N Desai was constituted with a broad-terms notation encompassing each onshore allotments nether MUDA’s 50:50 scheme.

While Siddaramaiah initially appeared jittery astir his future, helium regained assurance aft the Congress decided to backmost him to the hilt pursuing a gathering successful Delhi connected July 31. The authorities Cabinet passed a solution connected August 1 asking the Governor not to assistance the authorisation and accused Raj Bhavan of acting astatine the Centre’s behest. The CM was absent from that meeting.

The Congress decided to conflict the allegations legally, closing ranks down Siddaramaiah who pitched the MUDA allegations arsenic the effort of the BJP and the JD(S) to dislodge a CM from a Backward Class assemblage and destabilise a democratically elected government. In response, the BJP and the JD(S) organised a associated protestation march from Bengaluru to Mysuru from August 3 to 10 seeking Siddaramaiah’s resignation.

The BJP besides began protests connected Tuesday demanding Siddaramaiah’s resignation implicit the HC order. JD(S) person and Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy, who besides faces corruption allegations dating backmost to his tenure astatine the helm of the state, said helium would not telephone for Siddaramaiah’s resignation but the CM should see morals and his conscience.