Bengaluru: Two dozen civic amenity (CA) sites across several urban local bodies in the state were allotted to Congress Bhavan Trust to build party offices at district and taluk levels, data from municipal administrations and urban development departments show. Deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar, also state Congress president, has set a target of constructing 100 Congress Bhavans across the state and had planned to lay foundation stones for several of them on the day he completed six years as KPCC president later this year. Of the 24 sites, the municipal administration department allotted 12 plots valued at over Rs 5 crore, while the urban development department allotted another 12 plots worth more than Rs 12 crore. BJP has criticised the move, alleging Congress party acquired properties worth Rs 40 crore for Rs 2 crore in 31 locations, including these 24 sites. But Shivakumar defended the allotments, saying Congress was using govt land. Opposition leader in the legislative council Chalavadi Narayanaswamy accused the govt of violating regulations in allocating CA sites for Congress party offices and demanded that the allotments be reclaimed. He warned BJP would launch a protest if the govt failed to withdraw the allocations. On Tuesday, Narayanaswamy alleged Congress acquired expensive CA plots at low rates for its offices, and that valuable land in every district was allotted to the party. He said officials had said there was no provision to allocate CA sites for party offices, and cabinet approval was obtained despite this. Responding to the allegations, Shivakumar said, “We are building 100 Congress Bhavans to mark the centenary of Mahatma Gandhi’s presidency of Congress party in Belagavi. We are allocating only 5,000 to 10,000sqft of land for these buildings.” He accused BJP of double standards, citing land allotments during its tenure. “The land given to Chanakya University is worth nearly Rs 10 crore per acre, but it was allotted at Rs 50 lakh per acre for 100 acres, and crores were collected through CSR funds. This was a clear misuse of power,” he alleged. Shivakumar also questioned how the RSS office was built without land allotment and cited instances of public parks being converted for private use. “I can give hundreds of such examples. They have no moral right to lecture us,” he said, while insisting allotments were made as per rules and eligibility criteria and that critics were free to approach courts. Priyank Kharge, rural development and panchayat raj minister, said his department had allotted a plot to the Congress party, prompting allegations against him as well. He questioned how the previous govt allotted large tracts of land near Devanahalli to a university established just two years before the allotment.
