Mysuru: The Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) team nabbed 5 men including officials and middlemen allegedly involved in KHB land scam.

ACB team headed by SP Dr. H T Shekar had earlier issued notices to 47 people including farmers, housing board officials and son of MLA and former KHB Chairman G T Devegowda, alleged to have pocketed crores of rupees from the scam.

ACB team nabbed Assistant Executive Engineer M B Somashekar, Assistant Engineer M Mahesh, middlemen Jnaneshwar, Vijay Kumar and N B Vasu in connection with the case last night. However, Harish Gowda, son of MLA and former KHB chairman G T Devegowda remained untraceable and inaccessible over mobile phone too.

What does Lokayukta findings contain?

Based on the admission by Ramakrishna, personal assistant of the then KHB Chairman G T Devegowda, before the state Lokayukta, “the middlemen remained in constant touch with G T Devegowda through frequent visits and over phone”.

KHB officials did not reveal about Rs 36.5 Lakh per acre, the price fixed for land acquisition to farmers, whose land was listed for acquisition by KHB with malafide intentions.

The middlemen purchased/entered into purchase agreements with the farmers in 2007 being fully aware of the high land price in the offing and the KHB plans to acquire the land. The middlemen conniving with the officials took the innocent farmers for a ride and swindled crores of rupees in the land deals by paying meagre sums to farmers.