Karnataka government defends Kogilu colony demolitions, tells High Court settlers re-encroached landfill land

Bengaluru: The state government on Thursday informed the Karnataka high court that the temporary structures at the two colonies at Kogilu Layout were evicted solely to ensure the health and safety of the encroachers. Advocate General Shashikiran Shertty further submitted that despite the setting up of Temporary Rehabilitation Centres, encroachers have again put up temporary tents on the same site.

The state government placed on record the statement of objections before a division bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and CM Poonacha. The bench adjourned the hearing to next Wednesday, asking the state to provide details of the rehabilitation provided to the affected families.

The court is hearing a PIL filed by Zaiba Tabassum and others, questioning the demolition drive undertaken on December 20, 2025, at Waseem Colony and Fakeer Colony. They claimed the drive was in violation of the guidelines issued by the Apex Court specifying that no demolition should be undertaken without issuing prior show cause notice.

The state government submitted that about 167 temporary sheds have been cleared from the encroached site. “Inhabiting a Solid Waste Management Site is highly injurious and fatal to the health of the persons on the site and pollutes the ground water and the soil irreversibly, thereby affecting the health of neighbouring areas and the environment at large. The temporary rehabilitation centres provided are within 0.5 km to 5 km to avoid disrupting the livelihood of the encroachers,” the statement of objections said, adding that not a single person has moved from the encroached site to the temporary rehabilitation centres despite repeated requests and announcements.

The Advocate General (AG) submitted that as per the Google Earth images appended to the statement of objections, there were no constructions at the site in question till 2013 and that most of the constructions came up after May 2025. The AG said that although the encroachers have no right, the state government has ensured that they are provided temporary rehabilitation options along with food and medical facilities.

The state government said that the lands (9.36 acres and 5 acres), an abandoned quarry, was given to the BBMP as a landfill site by orders on November 28, 2014, and February 17, 2016. The entire land has been continuously used only for the disposal of solid waste and is being used by the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML), the statement of objections said.

At this juncture, the advocate for the petitioners submitted that some of the residents were allotted temporary allotment letters. The bench posed a question to the petitioners as to how the evicted persons claim to inhabit the place for decades when the Google Earth images, as produced by the state, depict no constructions at the site in 2013. The court has also asked the state to respond to the claim of allotment letters.