Devanahalli land acquisition row: Farmers' meeting with Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah inconclusive, new meeting on July 15

Indian Express

6 hours ago

The meeting between farmers opposing the Karnataka Government's plan to acquire 1,777 acres in the Bengaluru Rural district for a defence and aerospace park and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru ended inconclusively Friday.
During the meeting, several farmer unions, including the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) and the Kisan Sangharsh Samiti, and actor-turned-politician Prakash Raj, are said to have urged Siddaramaiah to cancel the land acquisition notification issued by the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB), but no decision was reached.
According to sources privy to the meeting, Siddaramaiah has called for another round of talks, scheduled for 11 am on July 15. The farmers said the government has informed them that the final notification cannot be withdrawn due to legal constraints.
The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (LARR Act, 2013) outlines a multi-stage process for land acquisition, including preliminary notification (Section 11), public consultation, social impact assessment (SIA), and final notification (Section 19). Once the final notification is issued, the process becomes legally binding, and withdrawal is complex unless specific conditions are met, such as procedural irregularities or failure to comply with the Act.
Raghu, one of the protesting farmers, told The Indian Express, 'We are not at all convinced with today's meeting. We expected the chief minister to take a pro-farmer stand, but we got nothing. Whenever there are issues related to farmers, the state government comes up with excuses such as legal constraints. We had hopes that the chief minister would stand by us, but all hopes were dashed.'
The farmers also did not agree to any negotiations linked to seeking more compensation.
'We had decided before the meeting that talks on compensation should be off the table. If they spoke about compensation, we had decided to stage a walkout. Our only demand is to stop the land acquisition process. If the government still goes ahead, bloodshed will follow in our villages,' said Raghu.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Siddaramaiah said experts have informed them that there are certain legal hurdles associated with dropping the land acquisition process. 'Since the final notification has already been issued in April, it is necessary to deliberate on its pros and cons. The government requires a 10-day time frame to arrive at a clear decision,' he said.
'The government cannot take any steps against the law. As the final notification has been issued in accordance with the law, its legal aspects must be thoroughly examined. A preliminary meeting regarding this was held (with legal experts) yesterday (Thursday),' the Karnataka chief minister added.
Siddaramaiah also stated that it was not possible to announce the government's stand immediately, and another meeting would be held in 10 days, during which the government is expected to clarify its position.
'We believe in democracy and dialogue. We have not obstructed any protest. The government has not attempted to suppress the protests. I, too, have been part of farmers' unions,' he added.