Kumaraswamy challenges Shivakumar to debate on Bidadi Township!

Union Heavy Industries and Steel Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Monday challenged Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar to a public debate on the controversial Bidadi Township project proposed near Bengaluru. He claimed that farmers are opposing this project.

Addressing a press conference here, Kumaraswamy said DK Shivakumar should come for a public debate on whether farmers agree with the project. I’m available whenever they’re ready. He might be busy till midnight, but I have requested him to spare some time on this issue. I’m not as busy as them. We will go before the public. Women and senior citizens have been protesting for the last 450 days, and we will go there too.

Alleging that the project would not provide any benefit to the public, he claimed that the project would achieve nothing except lining the pockets of Shivakumar. He also announced legal action against the project.

He said the legal fight against the Bidadi Township project is important. We have constituted a legal team to investigate all aspects of this issue. Within the next two-three days, we will go to the court with all the relevant documents.

Referring to the confidence of Congress leaders about returning to power in 2028, Kumaraswamy said that they are announcing that the Congress government will return to power in 2028. First they should be ready to go to jail.

I don’t know how many people will have to face the consequences, but I know that they have already opened an office in Nagarbhavi area of ​​Bengaluru. First bring Bengaluru on the right path. I am ready for any challenge. I have never given anyone a chance to loot public resources.

He acknowledged that the township proposal had started during his tenure as chief minister, but said it never progressed beyond the initial stage.

He said that I have already released detailed documents about the initiation of the project to the media. I accept that the proposal was initiated during my tenure. I had given preliminary approval to five township projects, but they remained in the initial stage.

He said that a meeting on the proposed Bengaluru Integrated Township was held on September 23, 2006, when he was the Chief Minister. Notification for the five integrated township projects was issued on October 18, 2006 and a documentation committee was formed on November 28, 2006.

He said it was also decided that no development work would be carried out in the proposed township areas until further approvals were obtained. Global tenders were invited and later many villages in Kanakapura taluk were brought under the proposed integrated township scheme.

Kumaraswamy further claimed that Congress leaders (including Mallikarjun Kharge, former chief ministers Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar) had opposed large-scale land acquisition in areas around Bengaluru for the project during discussions in the Assembly in 2007.