"It is too bleak a contention meriting any acceptance albeit prima facie that the petitioner was not behind every thing – standing just behind the curtain," the Karnataka High Court observed while upholding the state Governor's approval to probe graft charges against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. As the Congress leader faces an Enforcement Directorate probe now over land that was allotted to his wife under a BJP government, it is another chapter in the annals of Karnataka's recent political history, which is replete with top political rivals helping each other to lucrative land resources. Siddaramaiah’s wife was allotted 14 housing sites with a market value of Rs 55 crore in Mysuru City by the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) between 2020-2022 – when there was a BJP government in power in Karnataka. These sites were allotted in exchange for 3.16 acres allegedly acquired illegally by the MUDA outside Mysore, and valued at around Rs 3.5 crore. Not only are there several similar examples of political rivals doing favors for each other, this often involves land in cities like Bengaluru. 1. D K Shivakumar, now Karnataka Congress chief and Deputy CM: Allotted land in 2010; under BJP government led by B S Yediyurappa THE DEAL: Shivakumar bought 4.20 acres of industrial land in east Bengaluru for Rs 1.62 crore – the sale deed was executed on December 18, 2003 – when he was the Urban Development Minister (2002-2004) in the Congress government led by S M Krishna. The land, in Benniganahalli village, was notified for acquisition to create housing for the homeless by the Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) – an agency working under Shivakumar as Urban Development Minister. After Shivakumar bought the land, it was converted for residential use and, on May 10, 2004, a co-development agreement was signed with private builder Prudential Housing and Infrastructure Development Ltd, which was part of Puravankara Projects. THE GOVT CHANGE: In 2004, the Congress lost power and a Congress-JD(S) coalition government came in. Shivakumar made multiple requests to the government to get the land he had bought withdrawn from BDA acquisition, and persisted with this after the BJP government led by Yediyurappa came to power in 2008. On May 13, 2010, the BJP government passed an order denotifying the 4.20 acre land in favour of B K Srinivas, incidentally the original land owner from whom Shivakumar had bought the land and who died in 2004. On March 29, 2011, Shivakumar signed a new co-development agreement, with a 73:27 ratio of share of the land and the flats, to be developed by the Purvankara Projects subsidiary. Under the deal, against the 4.20 acres of denotified land he had bought for Rs 1.62 crore, Shivakumar got 52 flats which, as per his 2018 election affidavit, were valued at Rs 52 crore. Shivakumar's 2023 election affidavit indicates he is still holding eight flats, valued at Rs 8.22 crore, in the residential complex Purva Mid Town. THE COURT CASE: Multiple corruption complaints were filed against Shivakumar, Yediyurappa and others over the land deal in 2012 by activists, including T J Abraham, who is one of the complainants in the MUDA case against Siddaramaiah. A special court for corruption cases took cognizance of the case, but in December 2015, the Karnataka High Court quashed the proceedings on account of lack of sanction to prosecute the two leaders. The matter was taken to the Supreme Court by Abraham and another activist, Kabbalegowda, but was dismissed on February 21, 2019, as the petitioners applied for withdrawal. Advocate Prashant Bhushan, who had sought to intervene in the matter, also subsequently withdrew an impleading application in 2019. 1 (b). Second conflict of interest case of D K Shivakumar: Allotted land in 2004 when he was himself minister THE DEAL: In 2004, towards the end of the tenure of the S M Krishna government in which Shivakumar was Urban Development Minister, private firm Davanam Constructions – linked to Shivakumar as per his poll affidavits – bought 10 acres of prime land belonging to Minerva Mills of the National Textile Corporation in west Bengaluru at an auction. A joint development agreement was signed by Davanam Constructions and private builders Sobha Developers to build a mall, Global Malls, and an apartment complex on the land. The value of 6.84 lakh sq feet of the mall – or 90% of the total – owned by Shivakumar at the time of purchase was Rs 117 crore. As per his 2023 poll affidavit, Global Malls and three apartments in the Sobha apartment complex had a market value of over Rs 852 crore. In fact, a majority of the Rs 1,214 crore assets declared by Shivakumar in the 2023 affidavit accrued from this mall, which is run by Lulu Malls. Shivakumar has said of his property: "Several years ago, I made investments on land in and around Bengaluru. The prices of these properties have soared and resulted in wealth.” 2. B S Yediyurappa, former CM and BJP leader: Allotted land, along with family members, in 2008 when he headed govt THE DEAL: In 2008-2011, when he was the CM of Karnataka, Yediyurappa facilitated the denotification of many tracts of land acquired by the State for housing and industrial purposes, which were eventually acquired by his associates and family. One of these land tracts was acquired by the BDA in 2004. After the BDA moved to acquire the 1.12 acres in Rachenahalli village for developing Arkavathy Layout, a close aide of Yediyurappa, then MLA S N Krishnaiah Setty, obtained a General Power of Attorney for land measuring 26 guntas each (40 guntas make an acre) from the two original landowners, Gowramma and Panduranga, in east Bengaluru. The BDA had declared compensation of Rs 17.18 lakh for the acquisition of the land. In March-April 2006, despite the BDA having acquired the land, Krishnaiah Setty sold the 1.12 acres to Yediyurappa’s sons B Y Vijayendra (who is now the Karnataka BJP chief) and B Y Raghavendra (now an MP). They paid a sum of Rs 20 lakh each for two parcels of the 1.12 acres, as detailed in sale deeds that are part of court documents. When the land was sold to his sons in 2006, Yediyurappa was the deputy CM (February 2006-May 2007) in a JD(S)-BJP coalition government. In 2008, Yediyurappa became the CM. Now, Setty – despite having sold the 1.12 acres to Yediyurappa's sons in 2006 – sought denotification of the land from the BDA. On November 3, 2008, Yediyurappa cleared the same. Two years later, on November 22, 2010, Yediyurappa's sons sold the 1.12 acres, which they had bought for Rs 20 lakh each, for Rs 20 crore to M/s South West Mining Ltd, an affiliate of JSW Steel. The market value of the property was valued at Rs 5.22 crore at the time. THE COURT CASE: In 2011, activist-advocate Sirajin Bhasha filed a corruption complaint against Yediyurappa and others over the Rs 20 crore land deal, after obtaining sanction from then Governor. The land deal was referred to the CBI as part of a probe into allegations of Yediyurappa's family receiving Rs 40 crore as bribes for allowing illegal mining. One of the reasons Yediyurappa was forced to resign as the CM of Karnataka in 2011 was Lokayukta FIRs on this. In October 2016, a special CBI court in Bengaluru acquitted Yeddyurappa of charges of corruption, cheating, criminal conspiracy and forgery in the alleged Rs 40 crore mining case, including the denotification deal. After the court order, Yediyurappa said cases had been filed against him "unnecessarily”. He has also argued during multiple cases of corruption over denotification under him as CM in 2008-2011 that it was "an administrative order which does not constitute an offence". 3 (a) H D Kumaraswamy, Union Minister for Heavy Industries and former chief minister: Allotted land in 2008 along with family members by then BJP government THE DEAL: In 2006-07, when Kumaraswamy was the CM in a JD(S)-BJP government, he was approached for denotification of 1.11 acres of land in Gangenahalli village in Bengaluru North taluk, which had been taken over in 1977 by the BDA. The request for denotification was filed on February 28, 2007, by one M Rajashekharaiah who claimed to be the land owner, although land records revealed other owners. The proposal was objected to by state officials. After Yediyurappa became the CM heading a BJP government in 2008, a request was made again. On May 7, 2010, Yediyurappa passed an order denotifying the 1.11 acres of land. After it was denotified, the land was transferred to Vimala S, the mother-in-law of Kumaraswamy, who had obtained power of attorney for the land. She, in turn, executed a sale deed in favor of her son Dr T S Chenappa, the brother of Kumraswamy’s wife Anita. The land, which was valued at Rs 60 lakh at the time of denotification, is worth over Rs 20 crore at present. THE COURT CASE: In 2015, RTI activist Jayakumar Hiremath filed a corruption complaint against Yediyurappa, Kumaraswamy and others over the land deal. Yediyurappa and Kumaraswamy were accused of misusing their positions and colluding on the basis of fake documents for “unjust monetary gain'' and causing losses to the BDA. The case is still under investigation. Earlier this month, amid the MUDA land allegations against Siddaramaiah, the Congress charged that Kumaraswamy and Yediyurappa had connived to “denotify land worth more than Rs 100 crore” during their tenures as CMs. On September 28, asked about this, Kumaraswamy said: “When I was CM, during Janata Darshan, people would come from 9 am to 12 at midnight. I used to receive thousands of petitions… The documents in this case came to me and I signed in August 2007… When I signed, there was no power of attorney in favor of Vimala (his mother-in-law)." 3 (b). Another denotification case against Kumaraswamy The JD(S) leader faces charges of denotifying 2.24 acres of land acquired by the BDA in Vadeyarahalli village in west Bengaluru on October 1, 2007, a week before he stepped down as CM of a JD(S)-BJP coalition. The land was part of 783 acres acquired by the BDA in 1997 for a layout. After it was denotified, two general power attorney holders who had bought the land entered into a joint venture for developing a project with private developers. M/s Balaji Infra, M/s Sunrise Builders, and M/s Arati Builders created a layout with 186 plots, and sold each plot for Rs 25 lakh. THE COURT CASE: An activist, M S Mahadeva Swamy, filed a private corruption complaint in 2012 over the land deal involving Kumaraswamy and 18 others. The case is under trial. On July 29, this year, the complainant made a sworn statement reiterating his allegations of corruption, and said the deal had caused a loss of Rs 60 crore to 80 crore to the state exchequer. In his 2023 Assembly poll affidavit, Kumaraswamy said about the case: "No charges have been framed yet. No Appeal / Application for revision has been filed against the proceedings.” 4. Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress president and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha: Allotted land in 2010 and 2024, under a BJP government led by Yediyurappa and Congress under Siddaramaiah THE DEALS: In April 2010, under Yediyurappa as CM, the BDA approved the allotment of a civic amenity site measuring 8,125 sq m to the Siddhartha Vihar Trust managed by the family of Kharge for starting an educational institution. The trust requested a concession and the lease amount was fixed at Rs 1.10 crore instead of the originally designated Rs 2.03 crore. Later, the trust sought alternative land and was given 8,001 sq m (roughly 2 acres) in September 2010. In 2012, a CAG report called out the allotment as being against the BDA's rules for civic amenity sites. But the Yediyurappa government subsequently denotified the land and adjoining areas to private associates. In March 2021, the Karnataka High Court ordered cancellation of the original BDA land acquisition in the area where the Kharges had been allotted land – on account of alleged non-utilization of land. However, in 2022, the Siddhartha Vihar Trust obtained a stay with respect to their land, which is valued at over Rs 10 crore now. This year in March, the Congress government headed by Siddaramaiah, allotted an additional 5-acre civic amenity site in an industrial area at Hi Tech Defence and Aerospace Park Phase-1 in Bengaluru Urban district to the Siddhartha Vihar Trust for Rs 2.8 crore per acre, under the SC-reserved quota. The purpose was to set up an R&D and training centre, with the grant to the trust made within days of the Karnataka government making R&D centres eligible for allocation of civic amenity sites in industrial areas. The BJP alleged that the land value in the region is in the range of Rs 20 crore per acre. THE CASE: On September 27 this year, BJP leader N R Ramesh filed a complaint with the Lokayukta police alleging corruption in the civic amenity land allotments made to the Siddhartha Vihar Trust. "The matter is sub-judice and these legal issues are between the BDA and the earlier landowners.The property belongs to the BDA and the trust is only a lessee. The trust will abide by the final orders of the court," Karnataka minister and Kharge’s son Priyank Kharge has said. 5. Siddaramaiah, Karnataka CM: Allotted land in 2021-2022 under the BJP government led by Basavaraj Bommai THE DEAL: In 2010, when Siddaramaiah headed a previous Congress government, a 3.16 acre plot on the outskirts of Mysuru was gifted to his wife B M Parvathi by her brother. In 2021, Siddaramaiah's wife sought alternative land, citing illegal acquisition of her land by the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA). In December 2021 – under the BJP's watch – Siddaramaiah's wife was awarded 14 housing sites in Mysuru in exchange for the original 3.16 acres on the outskirts of Mysuru. The housing sites were granted under a controversial 50:50 scheme drafted in 2020 to give half the sites in a developed area in Mysore in exchange for half the land wrongly acquired by the MUDA in remote areas. The framework for the policy was reportedly laid down during Siddaramaiah's first tenure between 2013 and 2018 but implemented under BJP governments led by Yediyurappa and Basavaraj Bommai. The 14 new sites were valued officially at Rs 8.5 crore, compared to the Rs 3.5 crore worth of the 3.16 acres. RTI activists put its real value at Rs 55 crore. The MUDA meeting where the grant of the 14 housing sites was cleared was reportedly attended by Siddaramaiah's son and then MLA Yathindra. THE CASE: On September 24, upholding the Governor’s approval for filing of cases against Siddaramaiah, the High Court said: "It shocks the conscience of the Court as to how much is given to the petitioner as against 4,800 sq ft, it is 38,284 sq ft… two sites become 14 sites.” Siddaramaiah has said: "My wife made a request for allotment of alternative land as compensation for the wrong acquisition of her land by MUDA when I was the CM in 2014. I told her it would be wrong for me to decide when I am the CM.”
