The Karnataka government on Monday announced the allocation of alternative housing to families whose homes were demolished during an “anti-encroachment drive” in Kogilu village on the outskirts of Bengaluru, even as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar strongly defended the demolition, maintaining that the structures were illegal and built on government land.
Addressing the issue, Siddaramaiah said that the demolition of sheds in Kogilu on December 20 was carried out after due notice and involved land officially belonging to the government.
According to the Chief Minister, the land had been handed over for public purposes and encroachment would not be tolerated.
“At the same time, it is impossible for such illegal settlements to come up without the knowledge of local Revenue and municipal officials,” Siddaramaiah said, adding that he had ordered strict action against the concerned Tahsildars, Shirastedars and BBMP officials.
He warned that if government land is encroached upon again in the future, responsibility would rest squarely on the officials concerned.
Citing humanitarian considerations, Siddaramaiah said he had directed officials to identify eligible families who lost shelter and submit a list within two days.
Following discussions with Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Housing Minister BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan and the local MLA, the government decided to provide alternative housing at Baiyappanahalli, around 7 km from Kogilu, he said.
According to the Chief Minister, about 1,087 government-built houses are available at the Baiyappanahalli site. Each unit costs approximately ₹11.20 lakh. General category beneficiaries will receive subsidies of up to ₹8.70 lakh, while SC/ST beneficiaries will receive subsidies of up to ₹9.50 lakh, with the remaining amount to be provided as a small, verified loan.
Housing Minister Zameer Ahmed Khan has been entrusted with completing verification and ensuring that eligible families can occupy the houses from January 1.
“Let me be clear: though the sheds were illegal, alternative housing is being provided purely on humanitarian grounds,” Siddaramaiah said, adding that the decision would apply only to this case.
He reiterated that while the government had built one lakh houses to ensure dignity and shelter for the poor, it would not allow encroachment of public land and officials enabling such illegalities would face strict consequences.
The announcement came on the same day Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar visited Fakir Colony in Kogilu on December 29, days after hundreds of houses were demolished in what officials described as an anti-encroachment drive.
During the visit, distressed residents pleaded that they had been living in the area for decades. Many of the affected families belong to the Muslim community.
Shivakumar said the land in question had been notified by the government around nine to ten years ago for a solid waste management unit and posed potential health hazards. He stated that notices had been issued multiple times before the demolition and that the action was necessary to reclaim public land from encroachers and land mafia.
He insisted that the drive was not targeted at any particular community.
“This land was allocated by the government about 9–10 years ago for the solid waste management unit. However, some individuals encroached upon this government land and constructed sheds, and notices were issued multiple times as well,” Shivakumar said.
“Subsequently, our officials carried out the demolition operation. This matter has already come to the attention of the local legislator.”
He added that the Chief Minister had already convened meetings to discuss compensation and rehabilitation for eligible beneficiaries and assured that no injustice would be done to the eligible poor.
Shivakumar also said strict legal action would be taken against those who illegally sold or allotted government land.
Speaking to the media, Shivakumar criticised Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for describing the demolitions as “bulldozer raj” and anti-Muslim politics, accusing him of making political statements without knowing the facts and of interfering in Karnataka’s affairs.
Earlier, Pinarayi Vijayan had condemned the demolition of Fakir Colony and Waseem Layout, saying it uprooted Muslim families who had lived there for years and represented the “brutal normalisation of bulldozer raj.” He alleged that anti-minority politics was being executed under a Congress government and called on secular and democratic forces to resist such actions.
The government’s defence and rehabilitation announcement comes against the backdrop of the demolition drive carried out in the early hours of 20 December in Fakir Colony and Waseem Layout in Kogilu village near Yelahanka.
As previously reported by Maktoob, officials of the Greater Bengaluru Authority, backed by heavy police presence, began the operation around 4 am, deploying multiple earthmovers and stationing nearly 150 police personnel at the site.
Residents told Maktoob that they had been living in the area for 20 to 30 years, possessed Aadhaar cards, voter ID cards, PAN cards and ration cards, and had regularly participated in elections. Many said they were never served any notice before the demolition.
Families, including elderly residents and children, were left out in the open without food, water or shelter. Residents alleged that they were not allowed to remove their belongings before the bulldozers moved in and that carts and household items were crushed during the operation. Several said electricity and internet connections had been cut a day earlier.
Officials, however, claimed that the houses were constructed without permission on government land adjoining a pond near an Urdu Government School and alleged that many residents had migrated from outside Karnataka. The residents disputed these claims, maintaining that their entire lives had unfolded in Kogilu over decades.
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