'Government trying to loot over 9,000 acres in the name of a township': Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy

'The decisions made during my tenure on townships are different from the decisions taken today. The price of land was not high earlier. But now, the land price has skyrocketed,' Kumaraswamy said.

Mandya: Government is trying to loot in the name of Bidadi township.

"The state government is resorting to looting around 9,000 acres of fertile land in the pretext of Bidadi township. No one should even spare an inch of land. There is no need to be afraid. I am with the people," said Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy.

Speaking to reporters in Mandya, on Thursday, he said, "Even though the farmers have been opposing the township, the government is not responding to it and has been focusing on real estate".

"The decisions made during my tenure on townships are different from the decisions taken today. The price of land was not high earlier. But now, the land price has skyrocketed," he said.

"The Eagleton Golf Club is located within the area of the land that the government is going to acquire. In 2018, they had imposed a fine alleging that it had encroached on the government 'Karab' land. Earlier, when D K Shivakumar went for food, they had given him a bill for Rs 98,000. Hence, they imposed a fine of Rs 984 crore for 70 acres of Karab land," he alleged.

"The Cabinet meeting had decided to impose a fine of Rs 13 crore per every acre. Accordingly, let them give compensation to farmers in a 1:3 ratio," he demanded.

"There are dry lands in Kanakapura. Can't they acquire it and make it into a township? Why are they stuck in Bidadi? Do not evacuate the farmers from the place, which is conducive for agriculture," he said.

No concern for farmers

"I worked hard for the farmers, even when there was no independent government. Now, there is an independent government with 136 seats. What is wrong with them? Should the farmers sleep on the road for days. If there was concern, they would not have done this," Kumaraswamy said.

"The CM, who had gone to pay last respects to MLA Meti, could have gone to the protest venue nearby. He says of conducting a huge rally in the name of Ahinda. For what purpose is that?," he asked.