Advertisements
The troubled BJP government in Karnataka received another blow on Friday when IT & BT minister Katta Subramanya Naidu tendered his resignation following a first information report (FIR) filed by the Lokayukta against him in an alleged land scam case on Thursday.
Making a brief statement, Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa said: "To facilitate an impartial probe by Lokayukta, Katta Subramanya Naidu has submitted his resignation."
Adding to the pressure on the chief minister, Congress filed a fresh complaint with the Karnataka Lokayukata alleging that Yeddyurappa and his other ministerial colleagues were involved in land scams amounting to thousands of crores.
The BJP government has been at loggerheads with the Lokayukta with the latter opposing Yeddyurappa's move to conduct investigation into the land scams by a retired high court judge.
Since the BJP government came to power for the first time in Karnataka in May, 2008, eight minister have resigned (including Katta) for various reasons, including land scams.
The FIR by the Lokayukta is not just against Katta Subramanya Naidu but also his son Katta Jagadish, a local corporator and 11 state government officials.
According to the Lok Ayukta, a company called Itaska applied for IT & ITeS SEZ project near the Bangalore international airport in August 2006. The application was facilitated by Katta Jagadish. Subsequent to the application, Katta Subramanya Naidu, overlooking the irregularities in the application ordered its presentation before the state-level committee headed by the then chief minister.
In 2006, SV Srinivas, who headed a company called Itaska Software, approached the government seeking allotment of land near the Bangalore International Airport in Devanahalli to set up a SEZ in favour of United Telecom. According to the Lok Ayukta, Itaska Software promoter Srinivas and the ministers' family are business partners.
Subsequently, Katta Subrahmanya Naidu, who was the then Industries Minister in the erstwhile Janata Dal (Secular)-BJP coalition government, directed the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB), the nodal land acquisition agency, to acquire 325 acres, including those for which the shell company Indu Builders and Developers claimed to have held GPA from farmers.
"United Telecom, the business partner of Itaska Software, then deposited Rs 84 crore as compensation through KIADB to the minister's company Indu Builders and Developers for farmers' lands in its possession. This is an illegal transaction as the minister's company had not obtained GPA of farmers, instead they were fabricated by Indu Builders and Developers, which amounts to cheating the farmers and the government," the Lok Ayukta said.
In a related case, investigation was launched by the Lok Ayukta against the minister and his son Katta Jagadish (BJP councillor in the Greater Bangalore City Corporation) after farmer Anjanappa alleged that Rs 1.24 crore compensation awarded for the land acquired from him by the government had been received by an unknown person.
During investigation, it turned out that a Manohar Sony, who had furnished the address of the IT/BT minister's residence, had accepted the compensation for land acquired from Anjanappa. Sony had submitted a fabricated GPA, reportedly issued by the farmer Anjanappa to him. The compensation cheque had been delivered by KIADB to the minister's residence in September 2008.
