Bengaluru/Belagavi, Dec 30 (PTI) Stepping up the heat on the ruling Congress over a demolition drive, the BJP on Tuesday accused Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar of making a ‘U-Turn’ on the matter and bowing to pressure from the party high command in New Delhi.
A controversy has erupted over the eviction of alleged illegal occupants in Bengaluru's Kogilu Layout, with Kerala Chief Minister and political parties from that state lashing out at the action.
Addressing a press conference in Belagavi, BJP state president B Y Vijayendra said the chief minister and his deputy had reversed their stand on the demolition of illegal houses and alleged that the decisions were being dictated from outside the state.
He targeted AICC general secretary K Venugopal, who hails from neighbouring Kerala, over the issue.
"Should Karnataka’s policy decisions be taken by a Keralite K C Venugopal sitting in Delhi, or by the chief minister of this state," he asked.
Vijayendra said the BJP would take the issue to the streets across Karnataka after deliberations at the party's core committee meeting scheduled for January 5.
"Announcing houses for illegal migrants by throwing rules to the wind is completely illegal. Do the chief minister and deputy chief minister even have the legal authority to take such a decision?" he asked, adding that the houses were constructed for poor Kannadigas using taxpayers' money.
Alleging discrimination against Karnataka’s poor, Vijayendra recalled Siddaramaiah’s earlier announcements related to Kerala.
"When Wayanad was hit by floods, the chief minister announced construction of 100 houses there and gave Rs 15 lakh compensation for elephant attack deaths. What injustice have Karnataka’s poor committed," he asked.
He also accused the government of failing to curb the drug menace.
"Police from Maharashtra are coming and raiding drug factories...in Bengaluru. What is the state government and home department doing," he asked, alleging that Karnataka was being turned into a narcotics hub.
"(Issues like) drug mafia, insult to Kannadigas and irregularities in the Gruha Lakshmi scheme (Rs 2000 per month to women from EWS category) will be discussed, and a statewide agitation will be decided," he said about the January 5 meeting.
In Bengaluru, Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje echoed similar allegations, questioning whether the "heat of Kerala elections" was influencing decisions in Karnataka. Speaking at the BJP state office, Jagannath Bhavan, she demanded a high-level probe into illegal migration and alleged links to drug networks.
"The state government must cooperate in identifying and deporting Rohingyas and other illegal migrants," she said.
Karandlaje criticised alleged interference by Congress leaders from outside the state.
"K C Venugopal posts on (social media platform) X and tells how the Karnataka government should function. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is also dictating what should or should not be done here," she alleged, questioning whether Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar had the constitutional authority to run the government independently.
She said the eviction of 167 houses at Kogilu after issuing notices was a good move, but alleged that it was later questioned under pressure.
"Who are these migrants? Most of them are from West Bengal, with no proper addresses even there," she claimed, adding that she had written to the Bengaluru police commissioner regarding "illegal activities" in other areas such as Aminkere.
Accusing the chief minister and deputy chief minister of succumbing to "Delhi pressure", Karandlaje alleged that plans were being made to allot government houses to illegal migrants at Baiyappanahalli.
"Who are they? When did they apply? What about those who have applied for houses in Karnataka?" she asked. She demanded immediate seizure and verification of Aadhaar cards and voter IDs of suspected illegal migrants.
"If you give them houses and certificates, you are making them permanent. For the survival of Karnataka and the country, the police must act," she said.
The Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka said the state government was setting a wrong precedence by building houses for those who encroach on government land.
He alleged that the government is encouraging land mafia by allotting houses for the land grabbers.
Ashoka said Vijayan had spoken about the clearance of encroachments on government land at Kogilu Cross where a solid waste management unit project has been set up at a cost of Rs 100 crore.
“Muslims who came from Bangladesh are residing here and have obtained fake Aadhaar cards. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has decided to build houses for them under the Ashraya scheme out of humanity,” the BJP leader claimed.
According to him, there was a rocky area in nine acres, which later became a stone quarry. The state government decided to use it for waste disposal.
“It is said that Muslims have been here for 20 years. However, according to the 2023 Google Map (images), the area was filled with water and was empty land. No one was living here. Even 15 acres were empty,” Ashoka said.
The illegal settlement came up in the last six months.
“A Congress leader named Wasim has taken Rs four lakh to Rs five lakh and built houses for them. This is a Congress-sponsored illegality,” the LoP charged.