Bengaluru: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs in Karnataka last week staged a "day-and-night" dharna in both Legislative Assembly and Council over not allowing discussion regarding the alleged fraudulent allotment of sites to land losers by Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA). The alleged scam involves plots given to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's wife.
In a video clip, the protesting MLAs are seen carrying pillows and blankets. The Opposition was not allowed to discuss the issue in both the Houses. Assembly Speaker UT Khader rejected the opposition's adjournment motion notice on the matter which prompted the Opposition legislators to stage a day-and-night protest.
While the ruling Congress urged the Speaker not to allow discussion on the issue citing rules, the opposition BJP claimed that a needle of suspicion is pointing to the family of the "most important person" of the state, and demanded that it be allowed.
The opposition also alleged a political motive behind formation of the inquiry commission to probe the matter and said it was aimed at denying the House an opportunity to debate the issue.
"After hearing both sides, as the adjournment notice that the opposition has given is not an urgent matter and as an inquiry commission has been constituted under a retired judge to probe the charges, also as the matter is also not of immediate occurrence, it has been rejected," the Speaker ruled.
It is alleged that compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah's wife 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. MUDA had allotted plots to Parvathi under a 50:50 ratio scheme in lieu of 3.16 acres of her land, where MUDA developed a residential layout. The controversial scheme envisages allotting 50 per cent of developed land to the land loser in lieu of undeveloped land acquired for forming layouts.
