Bengaluru, June 30 (IANS) The Karnataka BJP, on Monday, demanded that the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah should immediately stop the ongoing government action against Dalits in Kadugodi area of Bengaluru.

Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Karnataka Legislative Council, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, has alleged that CM Siddaramaiah-led state government under the Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre, is attempting to “strangle the livelihoods” of Dalits.

Speaking during a protest held near the Gandhi statue at Vidhana Soudha, Narayanaswamy said that the Forest Department is trying to take over valuable agricultural land cultivated by Dalits in Dinnoor village in Kadugodi of Mahadevapura constituency in Bengaluru Urban district.

He accused Minister Khandre of leading this operation and called it an act of economic strangulation targeting Dalits.

He alleged that instead of carrying out its designated duties, the Forest department is now focused on seizing valuable land.

Despite multiple attempts, they were unable to get an appointment with the Chief Minister, he said.

Therefore, the Karnataka BJP have submitted a memorandum to the Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh and also handed over a petition to the Chief Minister’s Secretary.

LoP Narayanaswamy also said that there were 711 acres in Dinnoor, of which 278 acres were given to the Railways, around 3 acres to a temple, 13 acres for roads, 13 guntas for an Indira Canteen, 20 acres for housing in Dinnoor Colony, 2.5 acres for a crematorium, 32 acres for layout development, and 4.5 acres for a police station.

Of the total, 125 acres were under cultivation, and 45 acres were handed over for the Metro project.

He said that the government had granted the land to farmers as far back as 1950, and since then, they had been engaged in agriculture on that land.

He demanded that the attacks on Dalits must be stopped and condemned the arrests and intimidation tactics being used by the police.

BJP leader Narayanaswamy noted that there is a stay order in place against the eviction, yet attempts are still being made, which he termed condemnable.

While acknowledging that the matter is sub-judice, he criticised the state government for claiming it was only following a “task” assigned to them, calling such statements ridiculous.

He also said that the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) had acquired land from farmers in 1982 and had provided compensation accordingly.

Former BJP MP, S. Muniswamy, who also spoke at the protest, accused the Congress-led state government of targeting Dalit farmers by evicting them from their lands.

He said that violence, false cases and harassment were being inflicted upon the community, and this was unacceptable.

He asked whether only Dalit farmers were subject to the law.

“If all of that land belongs to the Forest Department, then why hasn’t the government cleared the lands given to the Railways? Why hasn’t the KIADB’s land been taken back? Why are Metro, police station, and other allocations untouched?” he asked.

Participating in the protest were Legislative Council Chief Whip N. Ravikumar, MLC Keshav Prasad, MLA Cement Manjunath, former MP S. Muniswamy, and former MLAs Y. Sampangi, Y. Ramakka, S. Balaraju, among other leaders.

Earlier, a Karnataka BJP delegation led by Opposition leader Narayanaswamy met Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh at her office on Monday and submitted a memorandum regarding the eviction of residents from the Kadugodi area in Bengaluru.

BJP leader Narayanaswamy said that it is shameful and unfortunate that farmers and local residents, who have been living and cultivating land for decades in the Kadugodi locality in Bengaluru Urban district, are being evicted.

He added that evicting the poorest and most destitute people — who survive by tilling the land — without any prior notice and without implementing any rehabilitation measures is unacceptable.

BJP leader Narayanaswamy urged that the matter should be carefully examined in accordance with the Supreme Court’s directions and existing government provisions, and appropriate action should be taken.

“I appeal that until the government announces a decision to protect these people, the eviction process should be halted,” he said.

“Survey Number 1 in Kadugodi comprises 711 acres of land, including 35 acres of agricultural land. This land is being cultivated by people belonging to the Scheduled Caste community. The farmers have been tilling the land since 1950 and possess government documents proving ownership,” he added.

–IANS

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