Bengaluru, 27 May

JD(S) leader Nikhil Kumaraswamy said on Wednesday that his party would not let “even an inch” of land be taken from farmers for the Bidadi Integrated Township projects, saying that 3,700 have already submitted dispute applications.

Nikhil, who visited various farmers in Ramanagara and Bidadi, slammed Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar for claiming that 80 per cent of the farmers in the area had consented to the proposed Greater Bengaluru township project in Bidadi. He said that compensation to the farmers would begin in June. The project is set to span nearly 6,000 acres to develop an AI-powered township.

However, Nikhil said that Shivakumar had not listened to the farmers, noting that many had been protesting against the project for 436 days.

“Why has he (Shivakumar) not come to the place and met them (farmers)?” Nikhil hit out.

“3,700 farmers have submitted dispute applications to the government that claims there is no dispute,” he mocked.

Speaking to farmers, he stressed that their consent was key.

The JD(S) X handle also posted videos of people alleging that the project would separate people from their ancestral homes, and that the Congress was just seeking money from the project.