It is time to close down Bangalore Development Authority by an Ordinance, says Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court

Its is time that the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) should be closed down by an Ordinance, said Chief Justice P.S. Dinesh Kumar of the High Court of Karnataka.

Its is time that the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) should be closed down by an Ordinance, said Chief Justice P.S. Dinesh Kumar of the High Court of Karnataka.

The Chief Justice, speaking for himself, made this oral remark while hearing an appeal related to the issue of non-payment of compensation for a land illegally acquired by the BDA without any acquisition process, for the past 21 years.

The remark was made when the Chief Justice, along with Justice T.G. Shivashankare Gowda in a Division Bench, was hearing the appeal filed by Muddegowda, who is now aged 60, a resident of Muddayyanapalya in the city.

The BDA took over Mr. Muddegowda’s land in 2003 for the Sir M. Visvesvaraya Layout without acquisition process and had driven him to a series of litigation. He filed the appeal in the High Court in June, 2015, challenging the March, 2015, order of the civil court, which had rejected his suit stating that he could not establish that the BDA had encroached his land and demolished sheds on the land.

During earlier hearings on the appeal, which was heard at least 52 times in the last nearly nine years, the BDA admitted that it had used 15 guntas of his land as against his claim of 18-20 guntas but the issue was dragged by offering sites in Kempegowda Layout as compensation as no site was available in Visvesvaraya Layout.

But the petitioner wanted a site in Visvesvaraya Layout or payment of compensation with interest.

When the appeal came up for hearing on February 13 morning session, the advocate for BDA said survey has to be conducted to ascertain the land. However, the Bench took serious exception to it and directed the personal appearance of BDA Commissioner N. Jayaram, an IAS officer, in the afternoon.