MUDA Commissioner’s arrest on bribery charge shows how corruption is thriving under Congress rule, says former MUDA chairman

Mangaluru City Corporation should come out with a white paper on its TDR certificate scheme as there are many doubts over the facility, says DYFI president Muneer Katipalla

Ravishankar Mijar, former chairman of MUDA speaking at a press conference in Mangaluru on Sunday, March 24. | Photo Credit: H.S. MANJUNATH

The Lokayukta police on Saturday arresting Mangaluru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) Commissioner Mansoor Ali for allegedly demanding ₹25 lakh as a bribe for issuing a TDR (Transfer of Development Rights) certificate to a city resident is a live example of how corruption is thriving in the Congress-led State government, a former Chairman of MUDA Ravishankar Mijar said here on Sunday, March 24.

Lokayuka police had also arrested a broker Mohammed Saleem while accepting the bribe allegedly on behalf of the MUDA Commissioner.

Addressing presspersons here on Sunday, Mr. Mijar alleged that the Congress is a synonym for corruption.

The former MUDA chairman said that there were several allegations against Mr. Ali after he took over. Conducting administration through agents and thus giving scope for corruption is the working style of the Congress, he alleged adding that people have been deprived of facilities through direct and proper administration.

Mr. Mijar said that when he was the chairman under the last BJP government, a help desk had been opened in the MUDA office to help people. But after Congress came to power, the help desk was not functioning. Instead, the menace of agents has gone up in the MUDA office.

Meanwhile, Karkala MLA and State general secretary of the BJP V. Sunil Kumar, in a statement, termed the corruption at MUDA office as “government sponsored.”

The MUDA Commissioner demanding the bribe to the tune of ₹25 lakh indicates that he has got the government’s patronage, Mr. Kumar alleged.

“This (State government led by Congress) is an 80% commission government. Lokayukta should investigate how much share (out of ₹25 lakh) went to other Ministers,” he said.

“After the Congress government took over, only fixing the rate card for corruption was pending to be done in the MUDA office,” Mr. Kumar said.

State president of Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) Muneer Katipalla said that the corruption at MUDA office has exposed the depth and dark sides of land mafia.

Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) should come out with a white paper on its TDR certificate scheme as there are many doubts over the facility. Presently, the government should ask the MCC not to go ahead by issuing a TDR certificate to the owner of 10.8-acre land near the Pachchanady solid waste management unit, he said. The government should investigate whether there were any irregularities in the TDR scheme, he said.