K'taka Lokayukta Chief Patil contemplating quitting?

Bangalore, Sept 19: With the new Karnataka Lokayukta chief Shivraj V Patil facing accusations relating to land allotted in his name, the issue has caused a dent in his spotless image. Speculation is also doing the rounds that he might quit the coveted post over being dragged into the land mess.

It has been reported that Patil was considerably hurt and pained by the turn of events. The former Supreme Court judge has been known for his corruption-free tag and for his efficiency in carrying out his duties. He had taken over from Santosh Hegde as Karnataka's Lokayukta chief.

It was alleged that he had acquired two plots of land, one in his name and the other in his wife's name flouting rules. One of them being a 9,600 sq ft plot allotted by the Karnataka State Judicial Department Employees House Building Cooperative Society in 1994 and the other a 4,012 sq ft plot from the Vyalikaval House Building Cooperative Society (VHBCS).

May consider that the move is an effort to silence him. A powerful threat for the powerful babus in the state, silencing the Lokayukta is the only option that they could have.

It was alleged that he had acquired the land flouting the bye-laws that bars two people from the same family of buying land separately. The VHBCS site is in the name of Patil's wife. He had even built a house in one of the plots years back.

Patil defending his case said that his wife was allotted the site in an auction by the VHBCS when it was raising money to clear debts. She had later surrendered the property through a letter dated Sept 14 and explained the reasons under which she bought it. This makes the bye laws of property ownership not applicable in such circumstances.

OneIndia News