Governor requests Kempanna Commission report on Arkavathy Layout Scam

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, June 22, 2024: Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has formally requested the state government to provide him with a copy of the Justice H.S. Kempanna Commission report on the Arkavathy Layout scam, which implicates Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in alleged illegal land denotifications during his first term.

According to sources, Gehlot has written to Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh asking for the report and additional related documents. The Governor’s request follows renewed political attention to past denotification cases, including those involving former Chief Ministers H.D. Kumaraswamy and B.S. Yediyurappa.

The Urban Development Department has forwarded the file to Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who also serves as Bengaluru City Development Minister, as the issue pertains to land in the city. Last month, BJP MLC C.T. Ravi urged Governor Gehlot to make the Kempanna Commission report public.

The Commission was set up in 2014, during Siddaramaiah’s first term as Chief Minister, to investigate allegations of illegal land denotifications. Though the report was submitted in 2017, it was never officially released. In February 2023, then Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai cited parts of the report in the Assembly, claiming that 868 acres were improperly excluded from acquisition, violating court orders and benefiting certain individuals. Bommai said the Arkavathy Layout scam resulted in an estimated loss of ₹8,000 crore to the state.

Siddaramaiah, who was the Leader of the Opposition at the time, dismissed the allegations, asserting that the Commission had cleared him of wrongdoing.

In response to Governor Gehlot’s request, the JD(S) has demanded Siddaramaiah’s resignation, accusing him of being complicit in the denotification of 541 acres. In a tweet, the party called it a "black mark" on the Congress government, adding that Siddaramaiah should resign before lecturing on morality.