The Karnataka Dalit Sangharsh Samiti (KDSS) staged a protest opposite the Bangalore Development Authority's head office here on Monday demanding action against the illegal acquisition of land and demolition of property belonging to Dalits at Bilekahalli, near Bannerghatta Road, here.
Narasimha Murthy, Legal Advisor to KDSS, said that a notice to acquire 18 guntas of land — six guntas in survey number 7/2 and 12 guntas in survey number 7/7 — had been issued by the BDA to Mutha, who was deceased, on January 4, 1980, and January 6, 1990.
However, the legal representatives of the deceased — over 32 people — were not notified about it, he added. On February 19, 2010, the BDA demolished the houses built on the property and displaced over 35 people in the process.
He added that the BDA offered a meagre Rs. 1.30 lakh as compensation to be divided between all the legal representatives who now have no roof over their heads.
Mr. Murthy termed the procedure employed by the BDA as “improper and illegal”. He demanded that the BDA return the acquired land and give the affected persons monetary compensation for the hardship they have had to endure.