Karnataka High Court Issues Temporary Stay on Siddaramaiah’s Corruption Trial, Hearing Postponed to August 29
By Web Desk
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has granted a temporary stay on the trial of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in a case involving corruption allegations related to the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA). The case pertains to allegations of corruption concerning land allocations made to Siddaramaiah’s wife. The court has postponed the hearing of Siddaramaiah’s petition challenging the Governor’s permission to file these corruption cases to August 29. However, Justice M. Nagaprasanna clarified that there has been no stay on the Governor’s permission itself. The court also instructed that no adverse orders should be issued by the lower court regarding the High Court’s proceedings.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Siddaramaiah, argued in court that the Governor had ignored the state cabinet’s advice to dismiss the request for permission to investigate the Chief Minister in the land scam case, and the Governor had not provided reasons for granting the permission.
The permission for trial against Siddaramaiah was granted by Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot in the land scam case. The allegations suggest that Siddaramaiah’s wife and others benefited from land transactions. Complaints from T.J. Abraham, Pradeep, and Snehamayi Krishna led the Karnataka Governor to take action against the Chief Minister.
The allegations in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority case involve claims that a valuable piece of land was exchanged for a less valuable area on the outskirts of the city. The opposition has alleged a ₹3,000 crore corruption scandal. It is alleged that Siddaramaiah’s wife and others received benefits from this scandal, though Siddaramaiah has denied the allegations.