Boom! De-notification scam allegations emerge against HDK, BSY

NT Correspondent Bengaluru: Allegations of a denotification scam have been leveled against former chief ministers HD Kumaraswamy and BS Yediyurappa by Kannada news website Eedina. According to the Eedina website Eedina.com, a plot measuring 1.11 acres in the Ganga Nagar locality (previously Gangenhalli) in Bengaluru, which was acquired by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) allegedly underwent suspicious de-notification, ending up with the brotherin- law of Kumaraswamy TS Channappa in July 2010. Yediyurappa had allegedly ordered the de-notification in June 2008. Thanks to a complaint by Right To Information (RTI) activist Jayakumar Hiremath on April 30, 2015, a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against Kumaraswamy, Yediyurappa, the mother-in-law of Kumaraswamy Vimala and Channappa and alleged “benami” (false name) applicant Rajashekharaiah under the Prevention of Corruption Act and sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Notification is the official intent of a government to acquire a plot while de-notification is the giving up of the claim on it. Preliminary notification for the relevant site was issued on March 16, 1976 and the final notification on April 21, 1988. Moreover, the issue became sub-judice later on.

‘Benami’ application dates to 2007; Eedina produced documents, revealing that on August 22, 2007, CM HD Kumaraswamy responded positively to an application by one Rajashekharaiah, who had written to the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) on the same day. Rajashekharaiah requested the 1.11 acres be de-notified in the name of G Thimmareddy (survey 7/1B), T Nagappa (survey 7/1C) and Muniswamappa (survey 7/1D), whom he claimed to be relatives.

However, the three were dead at the time. Highranking officers in the Urban Development Department (UDD) told Kumaraswamy the land couldn’t be de-notified since it was acquired under section 16 (2) of the BDA Act. Kumaraswamy’s CM term ended on October 9, 2007. On September 10, 2007, children of the late T Nagappa Jayaramaiah , N Suryanarayana and Kanthakumari, besides Shamanna, the son of the late Muniswamappa, made a General Power of Attorney (GPA) in favour of Vimala. A GPA enables the agent to act on behalf of the principal in real estate dealings and other matters.

Yediyurappa joins push: The next CM BS Yediyurappa, who took power in May 2008, also allegedly pursued the de-notification of the site.It is to be noted that Kumaraswamy was sworn in as CM on February 3, 2006 thanks to a power-sharing arrangement with the BJP. As per the arrangement, Yediyurappa would first become Deputy CM and then the CM for the last 20 months of the term. However, Kumaraswamy later reneged on the promise. There was Governor’s rule between October 2007 and May 2008 before the BJP came to power.

It is to be noted that in public, Kumaraswamy and Yediyurappa were on bad terms. Yediyurappa was also advised against the denotification by UDD officers but he allegedly went ahead and ordered it on June 5, 2008 for a “Group Housing Scheme,” said Eedina. A gazette notification was issued the next day. A month later, on July 5, 2010, Kumaraswamy’s mother-in-law and GPA Vimala allegedly issued a purchase letter in the name of her son TS Channappa.