Representation to Karnataka CM - Protect Farmers, Pastoralists, Dalits of North Bengaluru | 24 Mar 2023

Press Release

About 2500 people from across the 17 villages impacted by the development of Dr. K Shivaram Karanth Layout, as well as from across various parts of India have signed a representation to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka, Sri. Basavaraj Bommai, urging him to immediately issue an ordinance to protect the fundamental rights of farmers, pastoralists, dalits, backward classes and other communities of 17 villages in the Bengaluru North Taluk, who are adversely impacted by the displacement and dislocation on account of the development of the Dr. K Shivarama Karanth Layout by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA).

The representation highlights that the a 3-judge bench of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India headed by then Hon’ble Chief Justice Mr. U U Lalit, has held in the case of Mahanadi Coal Fields Ltd. and another vs. Mathias Oram & Ors that compensation for loss of land has to be determined as per the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (LARR 2013). However, in a series of orders in M.A. No. 1614/2019 issued by a Division Bench of the Hon’ble Supreme Court headed by Justice Mr. Abdul Nazeer (who retired in January 2023), it was held that the colonial and draconian Land Acquisition Act, 1894 shall apply for acquisition of lands in these 17 villages.

Farmers, pastoralists, dalits, backward classes and other communities of 17 villages have for decades now, questioned the need for the expansion of Bengaluru by the BDA when several of the BDA layouts developed over the past 2 decades are largely unoccupied. In effect they have highlighted that the BDA has promoted investment in land and is not addressing genuine housing needs.

Farmers have questioned how their right to housing is subordinate to that of those who will be alloted sites on their farmlands, and that too by displacing and throwing them to the streets. They also raised serious concerns that the proposed Dr. K Shivaram Karanth Layout is coming up in an area which is part of the watershed of the Thippagondanahalli Reservoir and the Arkavathy River, which are critical drinking water sources for the water starved Bengaluru metropolis.

The representation urges the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka to immediately take steps to respond to this ’supreme injustice’ (as the farmers and others affected have called it), and to immediately issue an ordinance to ensure that if at all their land are necessary for the project, then acquisition, compensation and rehabilitation must be as per the LARR 2013. The endorsed copy of the representation (in English and Kannada) with about 400 signatures is enclosed.

2000 more signatures can be found at:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uoGJzzaWW1zAjD-JaSdCD-MCj_6VKXhg/view?usp=share_link

Ramesh M

Dalit Sangharsha Samithi

And

Environment Support Group​​​​

Nidhi A H​​​​​​​