ED arrests ex-MUDA Commissioner Dinesh Kumar in land scam case

Bengaluru, Sep 17 (IANS) The sleuths of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) have arrested former Commissioner of the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), G.T. Dinesh Kumar, in connection with the MUDA scam, in which Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has been named as accused number one.

Initially, ED officials detained Dinesh Kumar while he was attending an inquiry at the ED office in the Shanthinagar area of Bengaluru regarding the MUDA scam. He was later formally arrested on Tuesday.

He was taken into custody by the ED in connection with allegations of illegal site allotments. Earlier in the day, the state government had granted permission to investigate Dinesh following a request made by the Lokayukta.

Subsequently, the ED went ahead and arrested him. The agency had already attached properties belonging to Dinesh as part of the investigation.

The Lokayukta, which is also probing the MUDA case, had sought permission to investigate both former MUDA President H.V. Rajeev and Dinesh. However, the state government granted consent to investigate only Dinesh.

Dinesh was summoned by the ED for questioning and was arrested thereafter. He faces charges of creating fake documents and using them to facilitate the illegal reallocation of sites for personal gain.

The ED stated that it has gathered evidence showing Dinesh had amassed wealth by accepting illicit payments. He had served as the Commissioner of MUDA in 2022.

Following allegations of illegal site allotments under a 50:50 ratio scheme, the government had transferred him without assigning a new posting. However, he was later appointed as the Registrar of Haveri University -- an appointment widely seen as a reward from the Congress-led government in Karnataka. After the controversy gained traction, the government subsequently cancelled the posting.

Meanwhile, in another development, activist Snehamayi Krishna, the complainant in the MUDA case, has stated that in relation to the case, he has requested the change of the Investigating Officer, the rejection of the 'B Final Report' that has been submitted against CM Siddaramaiah and others, and that he be given an opportunity to prove the charges in the Special Court for MLAs and MPs.

Snehamayi Krishna has also requested that separate cases be filed against the other accused individuals, and that action be taken against the investigating officers. The Special Court has scheduled the hearing of this application for September 29.

--IANS

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