’CM instructed me to resign’: MUDA chief K Marigowda quits citing health issues amid Siddaramaiah land allotment row

Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) chairman K Marigowda on Wednesday resigned from the post amid a row involving Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his wife and other family members, NDTV reported.

MUDA chief Marigowda, who is considered a close confidant of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, cited health reasons while resigning from the post.

"I have given my resignation to the Secretary of the Urban Development Department, the CM instructed me to resign, so I have resigned. My health is not good, so I resigned. MUDA investigation is ongoing. Let the investigation take place. The investigation will reveal the truth. There is no pressure on me. I resigned due to ill health. The CM has not put any pressure on me regarding the issue," TOI quoted Marigowda’s resignation letter.

In the recent past, Marigowda has faced much criticism and several of his critics blame him for the current crisis faced by the Karnataka chief minister in connection with the MUDA site allotment case.

The resignation comes amid the alleged land scam involving Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his wife and other family members. MUDA chief, along with chief minister Siddaramaiah, were at the center of the controversy in the alleged mishandling of compensatory sites by MUDA. The case revolves around a 3.2-acre parcel of land gifted to Siddaramaiah's wife, Parvathi, by her brother Mallikarjunaswamy in 2010.

Soon after the MUDA chairman resigned from his post, the BJP demanded that CM Siddaramaiah should also resign immediately stressing that he is "deeply embroiled" in the alleged land "scam".

BJP national spokesperson and MP Sambit Patra said at a press conference, “Siddaramaiah's offer to return the allotted land and his acceptance on the floor of the House that the money was diverted, does this not reek of an acceptance of guilt?... I call upon Siddaramaiah that if he has the slightest of morality left, then he should immediately step down. You should not wait for today's sunset... The curtain should be drawn on the regime of Karnataka even before today's sunset...”

It is important to note that Marigowda has worked with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah since 1983. He worked as President of the Mysuru Taluk Panchayat in 1995, Vice President of the Zilla Panchayat in 2000, and was later promoted to the top post eight years later.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah has not responded to the resignation so far.