Bengaluru: Karnataka High Court has rejected the plea submitted by KY Nanjegowda, the MLA representing Malur, who previously chaired the Malur Taluk Land Grant Committee in 2019. The case revolves around the allocation of 80 acres of valuable government land to individuals who were not eligible, including those who have since passed away, during his term in office.
The bench, presided over by Justice M Nagaprasanna, issued this ruling after considering the plea submitted by Nanje Gowda and three additional committee members. They had requested the dismissal of the charges against them. The High Court noted that this case serves as an example of how individuals in positions of authority abused their power by assigning government land to unqualified beneficiaries. Consequently, the court rejected the plea and removed the previously imposed restraining order, permitting further investigation.
Moreover, it’s worth noting that the individuals who filed the petition were not mentioned as accused in the initial FIR connected to the allegations. Consequently, the High Court declined the petitioners’ request to dismiss the second FIR.
The controversy centers on the distribution of government land to Narayanappa, who passed away in 2004, yet was assigned 1.39 acres of land in 2019. The complaint asserted that land had been allocated to individuals like Anand Gowda, a 40-year-old man, who had been cultivating the land for the past 50 years. This situation raised concerns regarding the activities of the committee led by Nanje Gowda, indicating potential misappropriation of government land.
To provide background information, the petitioner Nanje Gowda held the position of an MLA in 2019 and chaired the taluk land allocation committee, which was tasked with assigning government-owned lands to eligible recipients. The accusations primarily concern the distribution of government lands valued at millions of rupees to individuals who did not qualify, some of whom were deceased. These allegations came to light when a social worker named KC Rajanna filed a complaint with the Malur police station, urging an inquiry into the suspected irregularities. Initially, the police refrained from filing a First Information Report (FIR) based on this complaint.
Following this, Rajanna submitted a private complaint to the Special Court of People’s Representatives in Bangalore. The court instructed the Malur police to initiate an FIR against petitioner Nanjegowda and to carry out an inquiry based on Rajanna’s complaint. Consequently, an FIR was lodged against Nanjegowda. Subsequently, Nanjegowda and his associates approached the High Court, contesting this progression. With the recent ruling by the High Court, Nanjegowda and his colleagues will now be subject to a thorough investigation in this matter.