Bidadi township project: Gowda flags ‘land mafia’, writes to Sonia & Rahul

Bengaluru: A fresh political row has erupted over the proposed Bidadi township project, with former Prime Minister and JD(S) national president HD Deve Gowda alleging that a powerful “land mafia” is operating in Karnataka under the Congress govt patronage.

A day after Union minister HD Kumaraswamy accused deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar of turning the Bidadi township into a “real estate business”, Gowda said he had written to Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, besides chief minister Siddaramaiah, raising concerns over land dealings and restructuring of development authorities in Ramanagara region.

“I was elected from Ramanagara, and I also became the Prime Minister with the support of the people. Having so much of a relationship with the people of that area, it pains me to see how the five corporations have been formed by the present govt at the behest of the Congress,” Gowda said. Without directly naming Shivakumar, he linked the formation of the corporations to alleged land dealings.

“I don’t want to take his name. He is the irrigation minister. The five corporations are also under his control. This is how the land mafia is working,” he alleged.

The JD(S) patriarch also claimed Siddaramaiah was unable to act because of internal power equations within the cabinet. “ I have written to CM Siddaramaiah also. But he is unable to take steps because the other side is holding the powerful portfolio,” he claimed.

On Friday, Shivakumar had dismissed Kumaraswamy’s allegations, saying it was politically motivated. “If Kumaraswamy does not criticise us, he cannot survive politically. We do good work, and he opposes it. We are only continuing the project that he himself started. I will fix a date and time to go speak with farmers,” Shivakumar had said.