Bengaluru, June 23 (IANS) Reacting to Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar’s invitation for a discussion on the controversial Bidadi Township Project proposed near Bengaluru, Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Tuesday questioned the purpose of holding a meeting without the participation of affected farmers and other stakeholders.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Shivakumar declined to comment on Kumaraswamy’s demands and said he would speak about the matter later.

It may be noted that Union Minister Kumaraswamy on Monday challenged Chief Minister Shivakumar to a public debate on the proposed Bidadi Township Project near Bengaluru.

Accepting the challenge, Shivakumar invited Kumaraswamy to Vidhana Soudha for a discussion on June 26 and asked him to attend with a five-member team.

In response, Kumaraswamy suggested that the meeting be held on June 27 in the project-affected region and sought the participation of local stakeholders and affected residents in the discussion.

Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Kumaraswamy said farmers had been protesting against the Bidadi Township Project for nearly 450 days and alleged that there was confusion over the level of consent among landowners.

“The government claims that 80 per cent of the farmers have agreed to the project. However, 80 to 90 per cent of the farmers are saying they have not given their consent. There are several unanswered questions,” he added.

Kumaraswamy said Shivakumar had invited him for a meeting on the issue and suggested that he attend with a team of five representatives.

“The Chief Minister has invited me for a discussion and asked me to come with a team of five people. But I have only one team — the farmers,” he added.

The Union Minister said he had written to the Chief Minister requesting that affected farmers and stakeholders be included in the proposed discussion.

“I have sent a letter to the Chief Minister. Let us see how he responds,” he added.

Asked whether he was available for the meeting on June 26, Kumaraswamy said he had prior engagements scheduled throughout the day at different locations and had therefore requested that the meeting be held on the morning of June 27 instead.

“Three programmes are already scheduled on June 26 in different towns and villages from morning till evening. That is why I have requested the Chief Minister to convene the meeting at any convenient time on the morning of June 27,” he added.

Kumaraswamy reiterated his demand for a public discussion involving affected residents and stakeholders.

“I have sought a public debate and representation for the affected people and stakeholders. We have to wait and see whether that request is accepted,” he said.

Questioning the state government’s intent, Kumaraswamy alleged that the invitation appeared to be more of a formality than a genuine attempt at consultation.

“It appears that the invitation has been extended merely for the sake of it, to create the impression that a meeting has been offered. The real question is: what is there to discuss if the affected people are not present? There is no prestige issue for me. The government can decide to include the stakeholders at any time,” he said.

He also questioned the need to hold the meeting at Vidhana Soudha and accused the Congress government of pursuing its own interests rather than addressing public concerns.

“What is the necessity of holding the meeting at Vidhana Soudha? There are records of how Congress leaders criticised our government when we were in power over the same issue. Today, they are acting differently. This (Congress-led state) government is being run for its own interests rather than for the welfare of the state,” he alleged.

When reporters later sought Chief Minister Shivakumar’s response to Kumaraswamy’s letter and his request to hold the meeting on June 27, the Chief Minister declined to comment.

“Let us not discuss it now. I will brief the media later,” Shivakumar said before leaving.

–IANS

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