Rajesh Gowda shunted out of BDA, Kumar Naik new chief

On Thursday, the SC had castigated Gowda for allotting alternative sites to multiple people in a fully developed layout in violation of the apex court’s earlier order

The state government removed Rajesh Gowda M B as Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) Commissioner a day after the Supreme Court ordered it to remove the official for “disobeying” court orders.

In his place, the government appointed Kumar Naik G, a 1990 batch IAS officer, at the BDA. While no new responsibility has been given to Gowda, Naik will continue to be the additional chief secretary at the Energy Department.

On Thursday, a bench of Justices S Abdul Nazeer and Sanjiv Khanna castigated Gowda for allotting alternative sites to multiple people in a fully developed layout in violation of the apex court’s October 29, 2021 order.

Read | Backlash over allotment of open grounds to charities

“We had restrained allotment of alternative sites in developed layouts. The commissioner has violated our order and caused great financial loss to the BDA. Sites worth Rs 9 to Rs 10 crore have been allotted in RMV (2nd Stage Extension) by disobeying our orders,” the bench said.

Araga Jnanendra must resign: AAP

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has demanded the resignation of Home Minister Araga Jnanendra, who benefited from the BDA’s alternative site allotment at RMV 2nd Stage Extension against the apex court orders.

Reacting to the Supreme Court order, Karnataka Congress party president D K Shivakumar said a probe should also be conducted to find out who brought pressure on the BDA commissioner to allot sites illegally. “The commissioner may have acted under pressure,” he said.

On August 9, DH had reported the BDA’s decision on allotting alternative sites to four people, including Home Minister Araga Jnanendra, in violation of the Supreme Court order.