Rs 500 crore worth of Salarpuria Towers is now government property

The Bengaluru Urban district administration on Wednesday took possession of the Salarpuria Towers located in Koramangala, saying it was built on two acres of land that actually belongs to the State government. The market value of the property is estimated to be Rs 500 crore.

The multi-storey building houses Janasri news channel, Big Bazaar, Shoppers Stop and Bata showrooms. District officials hinted that the property is the benami of a politician from Ballari who was arrested by the CBI in the mining scam.

L C Nagaraj, Assistant Commissioner, Bengaluru South sub-division, said that the land in survey number 149 of Koramangala village belonged to the government after the abolition of the Inam land. “Interested persons should have claimed right over the land soon after the abolition of the Inam land in the 50s, which was not done,” he told Deccan Herald.

The process of taking control of the property began around 11 am when the Additional Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru Urban, R Venkatachalapathy, along with Nagaraj and Bengaluru South Tahsildar Dr Dayanand, reached the spot with policemen in tow. Even before traders could comprehend why officials and policemen had gathered there, labourers got to work by digging two holes on the premises. They then erected steel boards that proclaimed the government’s ownership of the property.

The development took the traders and their staff by surprise. They took a break from work to find out what was going around. L P Vajpayee, the CEO of Janasri news channel, arrived soon, asking for Nagaraj and demanding to know what it was all about.

Nagaraj explained that the property had changed hands but the fact remained that under sections 7 (2), 7 (3) and 7 (4) of the Mysore (Personal and Miscellaneous) Inams Abolition Rules, 1956, proper application was not submitted. K B Yellappa Reddy, one of the owners, hadn’t submitted the partition deed even when his father was alive at the time of the Karnataka Certain Inams Abolition Act, 1977. Hence, the district administration passed the order about taking possession of the land.

The order read: “The claim for occupancy rights by K B Yellappa Reddy on survey number 149, Koramangala village, Begur hobli, Bengaluru South taluk, measuring an extent of three acres and 33 guntas is rejected...” According to Nagaraj, the dispute had been going on for long. After the district administration rejected the claim of ownership by some individuals, the claimants moved the Karnataka High Court, which again referred the matter to the district administration. Finally, after hearing the matter, the district authorities rejected the claim and took over the property. The traders are baffled that the district administration sent them notices, ordering them to vacate the building in 15 days. The CEO of Janasri refused to comment on the matter while a spokesperson for Salarpuria Builders expressed ignorance about any such development.