"Have letter... we'll take legal advice": MUDA Commissioner after Siddaramaiah's wife offers to surrender plots

Mysuru (Karnataka) [India], October 1 : A day after Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's wife, BM Parvathi, offered to surrender plots to the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA), MUDA Commissioner AN Raghunandan confirmed receiving a letter and said that they would seek legal advice before deciding on the next course of action.
"I have received the letter from CM Siddaramaiah's wife regarding the return of the 14 sites. CM's son, Yathindra Siddaramaiah, came to our office and submitted the letter. They have voluntarily requested us to take back the sites," Raghunandan told reporters on Tuesday.
He further mentioned that legal consultation would be sought before determining the next steps.
"Since the case is under investigation, we will take legal advice before making any decision. The Lokayukta police have asked for some documents, which we will provide. No documents have been asked from the ED, and we will fully cooperate in the investigation," he added.
Earlier today, CM Siddaramaiah adopted a firm stance regarding allegations related to the MUDA land scam, reiterating that he would not resign and identifying himself as a "self-witness" in the matter.
The Karnataka CM also distinguished his situation from that of former Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, stating that Yeddyurappa's case involved land denotification, whereas he was not involved in such matters.
He expressed his intent to handle the situation legally, regardless of investigations by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) or any other entities.
"BS Yeddyurappa's case and mine are different cases. He did denotification of land, and I am not involved in it. I will not give my resignation as a self-witness. Whether ED or anything else, I will fight it out legally," he said.
Siddaramaiah explained that the land in question was gifted to his wife by her brother and that MUDA had encroached upon it. He said that his wife requested an alternative site but did not specify Vijayanagara, yet it was allocated to her.
He asserted that the situation has escalated into a political conflict and emphasized that the allegations of money laundering are not relevant to his case. He noted that his wife's actions were motivated by a desire to avoid controversy.
On Monday, after the ED booked the Karnataka CM for money laundering in a case linked to the alleged MUDA land allotment scam, his wife wrote to the MUDA Commissioner, offering to surrender the 14 plots that were allotted to her by the authority.
The Mysuru Lokayukta officially initiated an inquiry and investigation into the case following a September 27 court order to file an FIR. The Lokayukta was directed to investigate allegations of illegalities in the allotment of 14 sites worth Rs 56 crore to Siddaramaiah's wife, Parvathi, by MUDA.