Conspiracy Hatched To Register Lands In Waqf Board’s Name, Allege Karnataka Farmers As Tehsildar’s Office Sends Notices

Last Updated:October 26, 2024, 13:05 IST

The BJP alleges that the Karnataka government is trying to corner the land of Hindu farmers before amendment to Waqf laws

The BJP alleges that the Karnataka government is trying to corner the land of Hindu farmers before amendment to Waqf laws. (News18)

Farmer Parashuram from Karnataka’s Vijayapura is a worried man these days. It’s not the monsoon which is giving him sleepless nights but a notice from the Kolhar Tehsildar.

Parashuram, who owns 4.2 acres land in Survey No 299, Halladagennur village of the district, was given a notice on October 5 this year by tehsildars, claiming that the land he has been cultivating is a ‘Kabristan’ [graveyard] and an ex parte order will be passed in favour of the Waqf Board if Parashuram fails to provide documents to prove that it’s his land or to appear before Tahsildars

Parashuram claims his family has owned the land since the 1930s and has revenue records dating back to the 1960s. He says as recently as last year, the Record of Rights, Tenancy, and Crops (RTCs) had his name and it has been transferred from his grandfather to his father and then himself.

Parashuram is not alone. Several farmers from the district claim they have been given notices this month by different tehsildars in the district. Farmers are alleging a big conspiracy to register their land overnight in the name of the Waqf Board ahead of the Waqf Amendment Bill.

Tehsildars in Kolhar and Devarahipparagi have allegedly issued notices based on the DC’s instructions during a video conference in September. Farmers are producing RTC and revenue documents dating back to 1960s and 1970s, showing their right over the land and continuous possession and cultivation.

CNN-News18 accessed decades-old revenue records and notices issued this month.

“See, this is the land of my forefathers, and has been for centuries. But all of a sudden, our 15 acres of land in the village were given a notice by the tehsildar after minister Zameer Ahmed Khan came here. We were asked to register the land rights in the Waqf Board’s name. So, we went to Kolhar to meet the tehsildar. We were asked to come on the 23rd, but now, have been asked to come on November 6. We plead with MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal. And he has asked us to come to Bengaluru. Our family has owned this land since 1930-1940. And I now own the land. Our land records have no mention of Waqf. But we have been given notices out of the blue,” says Parashuram.

The farmers have questioned the timing of these notices.

The BJP alleges that the Karnataka government is trying to corner the land of Hindu farmers before amendment to Waqf laws. “For vote-bank politics and minority appeasement, Congress governments have empowered the Waqf Board with unbridled power to claim land across the country. Both in 1995 and 2013, Congress governments gave the Waqf Board unchecked powers to declare any land as Waqf after a quick inquiry, rule through its own tribunal with final authority, and also remove encroachments under Section 54,” accused the Bengaluru South MP.

CNN-News18 accessed documents in another case where farmer Eshwarappa Srishail who owns 3.58 acres of land in Survey No 743 of Kolhar Village in Vijapura district was issued notice on October 5, saying the land will be registered as Waqf property if he fails to appear before the tehsildar and submit relevant documents. Eshwarappa claims their family has been cultivating the land much before Independence and he has revenue records dating back to 1966 to prove his ownership of the land.

The ruling Congress government has accused the BJP of trying to rake up communal issues to benefit electorally in the upcoming assembly bypolls.

“The BJP is making baseless allegations. No one is grabbing land like that. Tejashwi Surya is making baseless allegations. I have seen this in the news, but no, we are not grabbing land like that,” said minister Dinesh Gundu Rao.

Industries minister MB Patil who hails from Vijayapura met farmers earlier in the week and tried to calm them.

The farmers have now approached the Karnataka High Court even as the BJP has promised to fight the issue politically.

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