‘I’ve done no wrong in BMIC project’

Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa has claimed that he has done no wrong and that he has not given even an inch of excess land other than the 20,193 acres of land that was mentioned in the Frame Work Agreement for Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises Ltd. (NICE), which is implementing the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor project (BMIC).

Talking to The Hindu here on Monday, he said he would strictly go by various orders of the Karnataka High Court and the Supreme Court on the subject and by the agreements signed during the regimes of his predecessors like H.D. Deve Gowda, J.H. Patel and S.M. Krishna. “I have not violated any agreement signed earlier with NICE,” Mr. Yeddyurappa said, and wondered why he was unnecessarily being blamed by the Opposition.

He was ready for a discussion on the subject in the forthcoming Karnataka Assembly session. “I will respond to all their queries in the Assembly,” he said.

Asked about the Janata Dal (Secular) allegation that he was “favouring” NICE, Mr. Yeddyurappa asked that the JD(S) give one example of “violation or irregularity”. “In fact, when JD(S) president H.D. Deve Gowda and others met me at my residence in Bangalore recently, Mr. Gowda praised me like anything. He even advised me to be careful on the issue as somebody might mislead me...” Mr. Yeddyurappa said.

“Mr. Gowda appreciated me then. I don’t know why he is blaming me now,” the Chief Minister said, and added that the Government had “nothing to hide” on the subject. The Opposition was blaming him because they are unable to digest the BJP Government’s popularity.

Earlier, he told journalists that the Government would acquire land for the proposed “land bank” by holding consultations with the owners and by paying rightful compensation and “we would not acquire land by force”. Similarly, a high-level committee would be set up by the Government to ensure that the land was properly used by the industry for the purpose for which it was allocated, he said.