12 FIRs against BS Yeddyurappa, more to follow soon

Bengaluru: The Lokayukta police on Tuesday registered two more FIRs against former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa in connection with the ongoing probe into the illegal denotification of land.

Sleuths of the anti-corruption agency, who had filed 10 FIRs till Monday, registered two more FIRs taking the total to 12. One of the two FIRs registered on Tuesday is related to denotification of 2.23 acres of land in Thanisandra in Bengaluru East Taluk, while the other is on denotification of 2.1 acres of land in HBR Layout.

The current spree of cases against the BJP national vice-president has made some saffron party leaders allege that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was indulging in vendetta politics. But the Lokayukta officials said that the FIRs have nothing to do with the present dispensation and that it is purely based on the findings of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India Report in 2012 – Denotification of land by government and allotment of sites by BDA.

Based on this report, Jayakumar Hiremath had filed a complaint with the Lokayukta in 2014. The case was referred to the CID for a preliminary inquiry. Now, based on the CID report that there were irregularities in denotification of lands, the Lokayukta police have started registering FIRs to initiate a detailed probe into the scam.

Mr Yeddyurappa will have to undergo a series of grilling sessions by the Lokayukta sleuths. It is said that once the Lokayuka police, who are looking into 40 such cases, file all the FIRs, they will summon Mr Yeddyurappa to appear before them to record his statements. It will take a few days to record his statements, a Lokayukta official said.

These cases will also have a negative impact on the political career of Mr Yeddyurappa, who is said to be eyeing the state BJP chief's post. Another former chief minister and JD(S) state president H.D. Kumaraswamy too will feel the heat soon, as the Lokayukta police will start filing FIRs against him, officials said.