Joining the chorus against the State Cabinet’s decision to sell land to JSW Steel, Leader of the Opposition in Legislative Council Kota Srinivasa Poojary on Sunday said that the government should rescind the order selling 3,666 acres of land in Sandur in Ballari district.
Talking to reporters here on Sunday, he said that the land, which was earlier leased to the company, has now been sold at a paltry sum of ₹ 1.25 lakh per acre. “When it had leased the land, there was no need for the government to sell it to the company,” he said and suspected a strong lobby that had forced the government to take this decision. “I do not rule out involvement of officials,” he said.
It was unfortunate, Mr. Poojary said, that the government has not considered the opposition by senior Congressman H.K. Patil, who headed the Cabinet sub-committee to oversee steps taken on a Lokayukta report about illegal mining in the State in the previous government. In his two letters, Mr. Patil said that the sale of land was detrimental to the interest of the State as it was being sold to a company that owed huge dues to the State-owned Mysore Minerals Limited.
Mr. Poojary said that the BJP will launch an agitation if the government does not rescind its decision to sell the land to JSW Steel.
State BJP general secretary C.T. Ravi and founder-president of Samaja Parivartana Samudaya S.R. Hiremath have also questioned the decision of the State Cabinet.
In support of the Cabinet decision, Rural Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda had said that JSW Steel in Ballari was given 3,660 acres in 2005-06 on the basis of lease-cum-sale to set up a plant and infrastructure for employees. As per the agreement, the lease had to be converted into a sale after 10 years, which the Cabinet has approved, Mr. Krishna Byre Gowda had said.