Hassan Land Scam: Former MLA, Ex-Tahsildars Arrested by CID

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Karnataka arrested more than 15 individuals on Friday, including former Janata Dal (Secular) MLA from Belur, K.S. Lingesh, and two former tahsildars, in connection with a land scam in Hassan district. The arrests come after a long investigation into irregularities in the allotment of government land to 'bagair hukum' (unauthorised) cultivators.

Bagair hukum refers to cultivation of government land without formal sanction. The two former tahsildars arrested are Mohan Kumar and Putta Shetty. A CID source said that there are nearly 30 accused in the case, and the agency is searching for the remaining suspects. The scam allegedly took place between January 2013 and January 2023, involving about 1,700 acres of land.

Mr. Lingesh was the head of the Bagair Hukum Committee in Belur during his tenure as MLA. The committee, typically headed by the local MLA, includes tahsildars as members. The case was originally registered at Belur police station following a complaint by an RTI activist from Kolar. The allegation is that the committee allotted land to non-existent beneficiaries, causing massive losses to the government.

The investigation was previously stayed but resumed after the stay was vacated. The CID then prepared a list of suspects and carried out arrests. None of the accused had obtained anticipatory bail, and some attempts to quash the case were unsuccessful.

Earlier, Mr. Lingesh had dismissed the allegations, stating that during his tenure he cleared files for 720 acres benefiting 562 residents of Belur taluk, and that no outsider was sanctioned land as alleged.