‘Siddaramaiah answered Guv’s show cause notice on same day’

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has already answered to the show cause notice issued by Governor Thaawar Chand Gehlot in connection with the alleged irregularities in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case, sources in the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said on Wednesday.

Along with replying to the notice, the Chief Minister has also submitted all relevant documents to the Governor, the sources confirmed.

The CMO sources confirmed that the reply to the show cause notice was given on the day when it was issued to Siddaramaiah.

The Governor’s office had sought some more documents related to the case and they have also been made available to the Governor.

The Chief Minister has said in his 60-page reply to the Governor that all allegations against him are baseless and that the notice issued to him is “improper”. He has also attached complete details of land allotments by MUDA to his family, along with verdicts from the Supreme Court and High Court, and has asserted that he has not misused his power, sources said.

“I have not done anything against the law regarding land allotments. The antecedents of the petitioner are known to the people of the state and it is untenable to issue a notice without considering these factors. In this context, the notice issued in connection with seeking consent for prosecution must be rejected,” the Chief Minister has said in his reply.

However, the reply does not include the advice by the Council of Ministers to the Governor to withdraw the notice issued to the Chief Minister and to reject the petition by the complainant T.J. Abraham.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had personally met and explained to the Governor along with the records.

Additionally, the Chief Minister has denied the allegations mentioned in the notice issued by the Governor.

Regarding the distribution of the MUDA site, Siddaramaiah stated that he had no role or influence in the matter.

He has clarified that the site was legally allocated to his wife and has sent the relevant documents along with his response.

The Chief Minister expressed confidence that the Governor would accept the response already given to the notice issued in the MUDA case.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, he stated that, since the MUDA matter was handled entirely according to legal procedures, he was confident that the Governor would accept the government’s response.

He emphasised that he did not exert any influence in the distribution of MUDA plots and explained that, under legal procedures, his wife was allocated an alternate plot during the BJP government’s tenure in 2021.

On August 3, Karnataka BJP said that the legal action against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah would not stop if he did not answer the Governor’s show cause notice.

The petitioner T.J. Abraham went to the Raj Bhavan and submitted additional information and clarification about the alleged land scam on Tuesday.

IANS