MUDA case: Karnataka ministers slam ED for leaking info to media, influencing Lokayukta

Karnataka ministers on Wednesday slammed the Enforcement Directorate for sharing the information with regard to MUDA site allotment case to media and trying to influence the Lokayukta probe into the issue.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his wife Parvathi B M, his brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy and others have been booked in the MUDA site allotment case registered by the Lokayukta police on the direction of a special court.

Parvathi is accused of illegally obtaining 14 MUDA sites in the upmarket of Mysuru city in lieu of ‘acquisition’ of three acres and 16 guntas of land in Kesare village.

Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar insisted that the investigations must be confidential and all the proof must be submitted only to the Court. “Leaking investigation details to the media shows their desperation. It is clear now there is no strength in their case. We will, however, fight it out in the court of law. We have faith in our legal system,” he told reporters here.

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said when the Lokayukta investigation is still underway, the ED too started its probe into the matter. According to him, two agencies cannot probe the same matter simultaneously. He said the ED not only arrived at a conclusion but also communicated the same to the Lokayukta.

“You are influencing the Lokayukta investigation, coming in the way of their investigation or you are indirectly telling them how to investigate the case. This is against the law,” Parameshwara said in a press conference.

The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge said wherever there is non-BJP government in the country, the central probe agencies are let loose on them.