KHB officials thrashed for fraud in site allotment

The public alleged auction rules were ignored

G Kantharaju and Umashankar, who had arrived from the KHB head office in Bangalore, K L Kulkarni, Executive Engineer of the KHB office in Gadag, Assistant Executive Engineer Ilala and Assistant Engineer Nandi were the officials who were at the receiving end of the public wrath.

No transparency
The public alleged that the officials had not conducted the draw of lots, to select site allottees, in a transparent manner and had indulged in fraudulent methods.

Around 3,000 applications were received from the public for the 250 sites up for
 grabs in the new layout being formed by Karnataka Housing Board. Auction rules were thrown to the winds, the applicants were ignored and the sites were allotted to ineligible people who had not even applied for the sites. Sites were allotted as per the whims and fancies of the Karnataka Housing Board officials, public alleged.

The protesters tore the title deeds pertaining to the sites and beat the officials black and blue. There was just one constable at the place of the incident and he remained a mute spectator.

Exhausted
Interestingly, when the officials were found exhausted after they received the blows, the people gave them water, but resumed thrashing them soon after.

Police came to the spot one hour after the incident and questioned the officials who had been thrashed. The site auction process was cancelled.

Now, Mandya on land scam map
One more land scam has surfaced in the State and this time it is in Mandya. Five people, including three MLAs, have been allotted sites in violation of law by the Mandya Urban Development Authority (MUDA). City advocate T S Satyananda has filed a private complaint in this regard in the Special Lokayukta Court, Mandya.

The complaint states that MLAs - M Srinivas, C S Puttaraju and A B Ramesh Babu - MUDA chairperson Vidya Nagendra and M J Chikkanna, who has been nominated to MUDA from the CMC, are the beneficiaries of the site allotment.  The Principal District Sessions Court - which is also the Special Lokayukta Court - is expected to announce its decision on whether to admit the plea for hearing on November 22.

The three MLAs have secured sites from MUDA, even though they have already been allotted sites in Bangalore under the MLA quota. It is alleged that the MUDA chairperson and Chikkanna secured sites in the names of their relatives also. Upendra Nayak, who retired after serving as the MUDA commissioner and T Nisar Ahmed, present incharge commissioner, have also been named as the accused in the private complaint.

As many as 107 sites have been allotted and the officials mentioned in the complaint have not followed the rules. The approval of the government was also not taken, the complaint says. The issue is not new as it had been raised in the State legisla- ture once in the past. The DC had investigated the charges and had submitted a report to the government.