Representative image generated by AI
ED attaches 92 properties worth ₹100 crore in MUDA scam linked to Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has provisionally attached 92 immovable properties, valued at approximately ₹100 crore, in connection with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) land allotment scam. The properties, registered in the names of various individuals and a housing cooperative society, are alleged to be fronts for influential persons, including MUDA officials.
The ED’s Bengaluru Zonal Office took this action under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, following an FIR registered by the Lokayukta Police, Mysuru. The case names Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and several others as accused under multiple sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
Investigations have reportedly uncovered widespread irregularities in the allotment of MUDA sites. ED officials revealed that statutory provisions and government guidelines were blatantly flouted to facilitate the fraudulent allocation of compensation sites to ineligible individuals and entities. Former MUDA commissioners, including G.T. Dinesh Kumar, have been identified as key players in the illegal allotments.
The probe also found evidence of bribes being taken in cash, through bank transfers, and in the form of movable and immovable assets. The alleged modus operandi involved allotting sites to ineligible parties using falsified or incomplete documents and, in some cases, backdating allotment letters to legitimise the fraud. The ill-gotten money was reportedly funneled through cooperative societies and the bank accounts of the associates and relatives of the involved officials, who later purchased MUDA sites in the names of these relatives.
This latest attachment is in addition to a previous seizure of 160 MUDA sites valued at ₹300 crore. With the fresh action, the total value of assets attached in the case has now reached around ₹400 crore.
The ED stated that further investigations are underway to uncover the complete extent of the scam.