Encroachment on Bagair Hukum land: Minister Krishna Byre Gowda warns criminal action

Belagavi: Karnataka Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda on Friday warned of criminal action against those attempting to encroach upon ‘Bagair Hukum’ land.

Replying to a query raised by Congress MLC Ramesh Babu during ‘Zero Hour’, Gowda said that, besides the encroachers themselves, action would be initiated against officials who are hand-in-glove with the miscreants.

“Government will not tolerate the ‘deep-rooted nexus’ enabling encroachment using forged documents. It’s shocking that certain officials have assisted the encroachers who are illegally procuring government land. Nobody involved in such illegal activities will be spared,” Gowda added.

Citing a case reported in Chikkanayakanahalli in Tumakuru district, Gowda said that as many as fraudulent cultivation permits were issued in the name of 98 individuals enabling encroachers to create fake records. “We have already filed an FIR against those who attempted to encroach land using these forged documents,” said the minister.

The government is aware of the gravity of this problem, and is treating the issue as a case of ‘organised land fraud’. “Officials have sought an additional week to complete the process of verification. Once the final report is submitted, we will initiate strict criminal action, and departmental inquiries will be initiated against every official in cahoots with these encroachers,” said Gowda.

Compensation paid

The minister said that Rs 2,249 crore had been paid in compensation to 14.21 lakh farmers who lost their crops owing to excess rain during the monsoon. “In Kalaburagi district alone, crops were destroyed across 3.23 lakh acres, and we have disbursed compensation of Rs 257.9 crore to the affected farmers,” said Gowda.