Belagavi, 17 Dec

BJP on Wednesday accused Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda of illegally grabbing 21.16 acres of land in Kolar district, allegedly recorded as a lake and a burial ground, and demanded a probe and his resignation.

Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, claimed the land comprised one acre in Survey No. 47 and 20.16 acres in Survey No. 46 in Garudapalya village, Narasapura hobli. He alleged the one-acre parcel was originally marked as a burial ground and the larger tract as lake land, both of which, he said, were illegally converted in mutation records to Gowda’s name. According to the BJP, the land is now worth over Rs 100 crore, with a market value of Rs 5–6 crore per acre.

Narayanaswamy alleged that changes were made to original records, including the addition of the word ‘kharab’, to facilitate the transfer. He demanded that the land be taken back by the government and that the minister resign, accusing him of corruption and misleading the public by projecting a “clean” image. BJP workers also staged a protest in Byatarayanapura, Gowda’s Assembly constituency in Bengaluru.

Rejecting the allegations, Gowda termed them politically motivated and said the lands were ancestral properties inherited from his grandfather and received through family partition. He denied any encroachment and said he was open to investigation by the Deputy Commissioner, Lokayukta or even the courts. “Let the truth come out,” he said, adding that he would cooperate fully with any impartial inquiry.