Amid land row, Muda chief K Mari Gowda quits on CM's orders

Mysore Urban Development Authority (Muda) Chairman K Mari Gowda resigned from his post on Wednesday on instructions from Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah.

He met the CM in Bengaluru and later submitted his letter to the urban development department, citing health reasons for stepping down. His resignation comes amid allegations of a massive scam in the allotment of housing plots in Muda, ensnaring several powerful politicians, including the CM's family.

Gowda, seen as a close confidante of Siddaramaiah, has been in the eye of a storm as many Congress leaders believe his actions were responsible for the political crisis the CM is facing now. Days before the CM's wife Parvathi decided to return her 14 plots to Muda, the local Congress leaders had mobbed Gowda at the Mysuru airport, forcing him to leave the place in a huff.

Gowda had previously also served as Mysuru Zilla Panchayat president. After his resignation, the BJP leaders stepped up pressure on the CM to resign while the JDS expected many more heads to roll. The CM's wife had, last month, returned the 14 housing plots in Mysuru to Muda and sought a comprehensive probe into the Muda affairs in an unexpected turn of events.

Siddaramaiah has been battling charges of helping her wife get 14 plots in upscale Vijayanagar locality in Mysuru in lieu of giving up 3 acre 16 guntas of land on the city outskirts to Muda. The Lokayukta police is currently investigating the role of CM and three others in the Muda site allotment case.