Bengaluru, Jun 10 (UNI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday provisionally attached 92 immovable properties valued at approximately ₹100 crore in connection with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam, a case linked to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others.
The agency stated the attachment was carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
This is the second major seizure in the ongoing investigation, taking the total value of attached assets in the case to ₹400 crore, which includes 160 MUDA sites worth around ₹300 crore previously attached.
According to the ED, the latest set of properties are held in the names of housing cooperative societies and individuals who allegedly acted as fronts or proxies for influential persons, including senior MUDA officials.
The scam, originally unearthed by the Karnataka Lokayukta Police in Mysuru through an FIR under sections of the IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act, involves the illegal allotment of MUDA sites through fraudulent methods, including use of fake documents, flouting of official guidelines, and backdating of allotment letters.
Investigations have brought to light the involvement of former MUDA commissioners, notably GT Dinesh Kumar, in facilitating these illegal allotments. The ED further revealed that bribes were allegedly collected in various forms — cash, bank transfers, and movable or immovable properties — which were routed through cooperative societies and bank accounts belonging to associates and relatives of officials involved in the scam.
Notably, the illicit proceeds were allegedly used to purchase some of the very MUDA sites that were illegally allotted, thus creating a complex web of money laundering.
The ED said further investigations are ongoing and more attachments may follow as the financial trail continues to unravel.
UNI BDN PRS