Damage done but no compensation

Two days after hundreds of sheds were illegally demolished by a BBMP engineer in Bellandur ward, the corporation was yet to announce compensation to hundreds of residents who were thrown out of their homes.

In Kariyammana Agrahara, residents in the grip of fear, have stopped going to work fearing that the demolition will resume. Several have left for their hometowns, some within Karnataka and others to West Bengal and Assam.

There were a few who were trying to pick up pieces following the BBMP assistant executive engineer Narayan Swamy’s action. They were recovering their utensils, pieces of wood and any other materials that would help them rebuild their lives.

Suvarna, a 30-year-old man from Raichur who lived in one of the sheds for more than two years, said police had come to the area and told the residents to clear the area or face lathi charge. “I am scared of living here and don’t want to stay anymore. I will go back to my hometown,” he said.

BBMP commissioner B H Anil Kumar, who told DH on Sunday that the engineer’s letter seeking police protection was unauthorised, agreed that the demolition was illegal but said he has to deliberate overcompensating the victims.

“He (the engineer) has misused his position by using a BBMP letterhead. We can’t hold the special commissioner and the additional commissioner responsible as they were not kept in the loop. Any decision on compensation will set a precedent,” he said.

The “rogue” engineer has since been sent back to his home department (PWD) and the BBMP commissioner said he had sought his immediate suspension. However, except for activists and lawyers, no official or leader has come to assure the residents of safety.

A member of Whitefield Rising refused to comment but pointed to a Facebook post which slammed the BBMP and police for blaming each other instead of helping the residents in distress.

“There was much being said about undocumented immigrants staying in Mahadevapura. Our elected (representative) also put out a clarion call. Lo and behold, demolition was carried out in Bellandur! ... Nobody knows who is in charge. BBMP and the police are blaming each other. AEE Narayan Swamy is suspended. He says he is caught between politicians and the administration. No undocumented immigrants per the news. Leave Bangladesh, people staying in this ‘private property’ were from Assam, Tripura and North Karnataka,” the post said.

The post urged the BBMP to show accountability by compensating for the losses and called upon those spreading fake news on social media to “own up to the horror” they have caused to the children who saw their homes being razed in front of their eyes.

BBMP Opposition leader Abdul Wajeed said the delay in compensation is only causing further damage to those affected by the demolition, “The damage is done. Who cares if they punish the officer who was responsible? The only way that the BBMP can redeem itself is by sanctioning alternative land and provide monetary compensation. This is a perfect example of the breakdown of law and order by means of a procedural lapse,” he said.