Peeved by the scale of irregularities in Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) in allotment of sites, citizen activists have sought a CBI probe into the affairs of the urban body.
As a first step the activists under the banner of Mysore Grahakara Parishat (MGP) will meet the Governor in due course and apprise him of the scale of the scandal and urge him to write a letter to the Chief Minister recommending a CBI probe. A petition will also be launched to get public involvement in a big way.
At a meeting convened by the MGP, advocate Arun Kumar said that what has come to light is only the tip of the iceberg and the rot was much deeper. However, he suggested that any actionable exercise should be limited to the scandal pertaining to what has come to be known as ‘’50:50’’ when the scheme came into vogue around 2015.
Mr. Arun Kumar said that the 50:50 scheme in which 50 per cent of the land developed by the MUDA is allotted to the land losers in lieu of compensation, came into being only in 2015. The real scam is that many of those whose land was acquired in the 1990s have also been compensated under the 50:50 scheme. No law can be applied with retrospective effect and it is only prospective, hence there was a solid case against the MUDA and its move was not legally tenable, he added.
Bhamy V. Shenoy founding president of the MGP said that land encroachment in Mysuru was rampant and it would be prudent to reopen the Vijayabhaskar committee report on the subject (of land encroachment). He said the present outrage against MUDA will dissipate after a few days but the momentum should be sustained and hence suggested the launch of an online petition.
A section of the citizens opined that a PIL should be filed in the court to seek a judicial probe as they had little faith in the government probe and its findings were expected to be biased to protect the political leaders and their appointees.
There was also a suggestion that MUDA should be shut down as it had failed to discharge its responsibility towards the public and was functioning more like an agent for real estate sharks and middlemen.
Former MUDA employee Nataraj said that irregularities in site allotment and land acquisition had become rampant in recent years while another site aspirant said that a complaint should be filed with the Lokyukta also against the MUDA officials.
Meanwhile, a senior official in the revenue department said that time was ripe to reframe the rules on the composition of MUDA. At present MUDA members are all elected representatives most of whom are into real estate and plot development. Non-political representatives with impeccable credentials should be included to usher in transparency, he added.
