Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, on Wednesday, launched a strong counterattack against former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda over his criticism of the proposed Bidadi township, accusing the JD(S) patriarch of political hypocrisy and asserting that the project was conceived and pursued by previous governments headed by H.D. Kumaraswamy and B.S. Yediyurappa.
Responding to Deve Gowda’s press conference held on Tuesday, where the former prime minister urged the government to abandon the township proposal following clashes between farmers and officials in Mandalahalli village, Shivakumar said he had gone through the letter written by Deve Gowda and said he is writing a reply to the same.
“I have carefully examined all the points raised by H.D. Deve Gowda. I am deeply hurt by what happened in Bidadi. Our officers were also attacked. But this incident is part of a political conspiracy,” the chief minister said at a press conference at Vidhana Soudha.
Rejecting allegations that the township was his personal ambition, Shivakumar said, “I have never claimed this is my dream project. I am only continuing a proposal initiated by previous governments. I am the son of a farmer, and I understand the struggles of farmers.”
Without naming his political opponents, he alleged that some leaders could not accept him becoming chief minister and were attempting to create controversies. “There is a conspiracy to send me to jail,” he said.
Tracing the origins of the project, Shivakumar said the proposal to develop satellite townships around Bengaluru was first taken up during the JD(S)-BJP coalition government led by Kumaraswamy. According to him, plans for five townships, including Bidadi, Nandagudi and Sathanur, were approved and later taken forward under a public-private partnership model through the Bengaluru Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA).
“Who was the chief minister when the global tender was floated? It was Kumaraswamy,” he said.
He further claimed that Mandalahalli and Vaderahalli villages were brought under the township proposal in 2007 and that the Yediyurappa government revived the project in 2010 by calling for fresh global tenders when R. Ashoka was the minister.
Displaying old government records, Shivakumar referred to a Gazette notification issued on November 29, 2006, and alleged that the then government had declared the area a ‘red zone’ and initiated eviction proceedings. He also claimed that private developer DLF had been brought into the project after paying ₹400 crore and that compensation had been fixed at ₹25 lakh an acre.
“Did I do the real estate business?” he asked. “Who was trying to hand over land to private developers? Who is the real estate agent?”
The chief minister also targeted the JD(S) leadership over land ownership in the project area, alleging that members of Deve Gowda’s family owned around 36 acres there.
“It pains me to take Deve Gowda’s name. But where was your fight then? Why didn’t you protest when these decisions were taken?” he asked.
Shivakumar said similar proposals had continued even during the BJP government in 2019, with plans earmarking 30 per cent of the land for industrial use, 30 per cent for residential development and the remainder for other purposes.
Seeking to reassure farmers, he maintained that the government would not resort to forcible land acquisition.
“I am not in a hurry. I will constitute a committee to examine all the issues. There will be no force in acquiring land,” he said, while appealing to farmers, particularly women in Bengaluru Urban district, not to be misled by political campaigns.
