CM aide accuses Gowda family of land grab

The war of words between the ruling BJP in Karnataka and JD(S) over the alleged land scams today intensified further with a key aide of Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa accusing former prime minister H D Deve Gowda and his family of grabbing 82.01 acres of government land.

At a press conference here, Yeddyurappa’s political secretary B J Puttaswamy, a former JDS activist now in BJP, released details of the lands allegedly grabbed by the Gowda family in Hassan, his home district. He charged that grazing land, tank beds and other government lands were grabbed by Deve Gowda and his family at Kamenahalli, Paduvalahippe, Galipura Kaval, Maragowdanahalli, Chakenahalli of Holenarasipura taluk and Arakalagudu Taluk in Hassan.

Puttaswamy said though an enquiry into the land grab by Mysore Divisional Commissioner has recommended action against Gowda, no action had been taken so far.

He claimed the Revenue Department Principal Secretary had on October 28 reported that “original file is missing” in connection with the lands grabbed by Gowda and family members.

Puttaswamy dared Gowda and his sons to keep up their word that they would quit politics if anyone proved land grabbing allegations against them. “Now I have proved it. They should quit politics,” he said. He also demanded that the chief minister should take steps to reclaim the land grabbed by the JD(S) chief and his family.

Allegations of land scams have been flying thick and fast between BJP and the Opposition, particularly JD(S), which has been targetting the chief minister over denotification of lands and allotment of prime plots to his family members. Angered by the JD(S) charges, Yeddyurappa has vowed “not to rest” till he exposed the “misdeeds” of the Deve Gowda family.

The government has ordered a judicial probe into land scam allegations that covers a 16-year-period, bringing the regimes of Gowda’s son H D Kumaraswamy, S M Krishna and Dharam Singh, as also Deve Gowda himself under its ambit.

In another decision targetting Deve Gowda, the state cabinet yesterday decided to hold a CID probe into the alleged corruption and irregularities in Upper Krishna Irrigation project during the tenure of JD(S) chief’s tenure as chief minister.