I won’t resign: Siddaramaiah on Karnataka Lokayukta FIR in Muda ‘scam’

Karanataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah asserted that he would not resign and reiterated any wrongdoing in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment case. His remarks came a day after a special court ordered the Lokayukta to conduct a probe against him over alleged irregularities in the case, paving the way to register an FIR against the Chief Minister.
“Did the Prime Minister tender his resignation after the Godhra riots as his capacity as the Chief Minister of Gujarat at the time? (Former Karnataka Chief Minister) HD Kumaraswamy, who is a Union Minister now, is facing corruption charges. Will he resign?” he queried.
“I will not resign. I will fight legally. I have done no wrong, there is no need for me to resign,” Siddaramaiah added.
His remarks came as the opposition BJP staged a protest at the Karnataka Assembly earlier today, demanding the Chief Minister’s resignation.
Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar has also ruled out the possibility of Siddaramaiah stepping down.
In its order on Wednesday, the special court asked the Lokayukta to submit a report in three months and passed an order, directing authorities to file an FIR in the case.
A day ago, the Karnataka High Court dismissed Siddaramaiah’s petition challenging the legality of the Governor’s nod to an investigation against him.
The court said the Governor can take “independent decisions if exceptional circumstances arise”, adding that his order “does not suffer from non-application of mind”.
The Governor’s prosecution sanction was granted in July following complaints by three activists against the Chief Minister in the MUDA case.
Siddaramaiah had challenged the approval for an investigation under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 218 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.
The Muda case pertains to allegations that compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah’s wife BM Parvathi in an upmarket area in Mysuru that had higher property value as compared to the location of her land that had been “acquired” by the authority.
Muda had allotted plots to Parvathi under a 50:50 ratio scheme in lieu of 3.16 acres of her land, where the authority developed a residential layout.