MUDA will provide all documents to ED as sought by it, says Karnataka Urban Development Minister

PTI, Oct 18, 2024, 6:14 PM IST

Karnataka Urban Development Minister Suresha B S (Byrathi Suresh) on Friday said the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) would provide all documents to the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) as sought by the agency in connection with a case in which it has booked Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his family members and others.

The ED on Friday conducted searches in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the MUDA site allotment case.

The MUDA office in Mysuru and some other locations were raided by the federal probe agency officials along with an escort of a central paramilitary force, “Whatever documents are sought, MUDA will give….ED is said to have got powers to raid after ECIR (Enforcement Case Information Report) being booked (against the CM), whatever documents they ask, MUDA will give, there is no question of us getting involved in this, officials will provide documents,” Suresh, under whose department MUDA comes, said.

Speaking to reporters, he said: “…it is our country’s law, it is our ED, police and courts and they know their jurisdictional limits, let them (ED) investigate.” “It is not a raid, it is seeking documents. How can you call seeking documents a raid? They (ED) are seeking documents. Officials will give what they ask. It is 8 lakh page documents. Desai committee was given 8 lakh pages, the same will be given if sought. They may not be able to give in one day as taking xerox (photocopy) of 8 lakh pages may take a week. They will give,” he said.

On September 30, the ED filed an ECIR to book the CM and others taking cognisance of the FIR registered by the Lokayukta.

The CM is facing allegations of illegalities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife B M Parvathi by the MUDA. Siddaramaiah, his wife, brother-in-law B M Mallikarjuna Swamy and Devaraju — from whom Swamy had purchased a land and gifted it to Parvathi — and others have been named in the FIR registered by the Mysuru-located Lokayukta police establishment on September 27.

Rejecting allegations against him that he has shifted documents related to the case from MUDA, he said, “I have not got any files. Mostly Chalavadi Narayanaswamy (BJP leader and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council) might have stolen files from there. H D Kumaraswamy (Union Minister and JD(S) leader) might have got it from there, if it is in his house, let ED go ask at his house.”