Mysuru: Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) office premises in the city witnessed tense moments Thursday after farmers from Varuna constituency staged a protest against land acquisition and warned of launching ‘Bidadi model’ protests if govt continued with the acquisition process.According to the agitators, govt issued land acquisition notices on Aug 11 for 165 acres in Marase and Madaragalli villages. As many as 65 farmers are likely to be affected and fear losing their agricultural land.The protest turned tense as agitators demanded answers from KIADB officials on the rationale behind the acquisition notification. “All 165 acres of land identified for acquisition is cultivable. Acquiring this land will make the farmers homeless and destroy their livelihood,” they alleged.The villagers alleged rampant corruption behind the land acquisition proposal and claimed that a land mafia was operating behind the decision taken unilaterally without consulting the affected farmers.They also pointed out that Congress leaders, including opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, have opposed forcible acquisition of agricultural land from farmers, but alleged that officials in this case were misleading Congress leadership as well as govt.In a dramatic moment during the protest, a woman farmer made a KIADB official read out the acquisition notification after officials initially denied that the land would be acquired.The farmers alleged that the notification had been issued without bringing the matter to the notice of former chief minister Siddaramaiah and Mysuru district in-charge minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah.BJP leader Shushrutha Gowda, who led the protest, alleged that the notification had been issued secretly without informing either the former chief minister or the district in charge minister. “There is not even a single inch of barren land here. The entire 165 acres is fertile and cultivated. Despite this, KIADB is trying to acquire the land,” he alleged.
