Vishwabharati Layout residents demand end to illegal land dealings

Residents of Vishwabharati Layout in West Bengaluru have urged the government to end the misery of site owners who are not being allowed to construct homes for the last 30 years due to a legal tussle.

The Sachidananda Nagar Residents' Welfare Association said that Vishwabharati House Building Cooperative Society had developed a housing layout over 65 acres. More than 170 plot owners are senior citizens.

"The plots on the 11-acre area in survey numbers 212-213 are under the ownership of the members of the cooperative society. However, a landowner who took advance payments and provided the space after a written agreement is now trying to construct a house in the area," the RWA said in a petition to the government.

According to the residents, the matter was taken to a civil court in 1996, which upheld its legality and ordered the assistant commissioner to register the sale deed. "Later, the high court dismissed the appeal by the landowner. On February 13, another person has come to claim the ownership of land," the RWA said.

The area in survey number 213 was sold to another person and the registration process is underway, according to the RWA. These developments have frustrated the residents.

RWA president Damodar Naidu demanded the cancellation of the registration and police protection for house construction.