India
oi-Madhuri Adnal
Police have booked more than 20 farmers after a confrontation during a land survey for the proposed Greater Bengaluru Integrated Township near Bidadi turned violent, prompting the Ramanagara district administration to suspend the survey temporarily.
An FIR has been registered at Bidadi Police Station based on a complaint filed by Revenue Department officials. The farmers have been accused of assaulting government officials, obstructing public servants from carrying out their duties and disrupting the land survey.
The Ramanagara district administration temporarily suspended a land survey for the Greater Bengaluru Integrated Township near Bidadi after farmer protests turned violent, leading to over 20 farmers being booked for allegedly assaulting officials and damaging vehicles in Mandalahalli village.
The clash took place in Mandalahalli village where revenue officials, accompanied by police personnel had arrived to conduct a Joint Measurement (JMC) survey after the government issued a land acquisition notification for the proposed township.
According to police, a large group of farmers gathered at the survey site soon after the team arrived and objected to the exercise, claiming they had never consented to the acquisition of their agricultural land. The protest escalated as arguments between officials and villagers intensified.
Several women joined the demonstration carrying brooms as a symbolic protest. During the confrontation, some protesters allegedly waved the brooms at police personnel, while others reportedly struck officers with them.
Authorities alleged that the situation later turned violent, with stones being thrown at vehicles used by the survey team. Officials said all the government vehicles deployed for the operation sustained damage. Several revenue officials were also injured in the incident and taken to hospital for treatment. Their medical condition has not been officially disclosed.
Following the violence, the district administration has stepped up security in villages covered under the proposed township project amid concerns that protests could resume if the survey is restarted.
Officials have temporarily suspended the Joint Measurement survey and are expected to hold discussions with protesting farmers before deciding on the next phase of the exercise. However, surveys on lands belonging to farmers who have consented to the project are likely to continue under heavy police protection.
Meanwhile, farmers have maintained that they were defending their land and argued that the government should not proceed with land surveys or acquisition without the consent of landowners.
