Land allotted to K S Gowda educational trust under political pressure to be reviewed

Land allotted to K S Gowda educational trust under political pressure to be reviewed

Mangaloretoday News Network

Mangalore, March 21:  Vijay Kumar, the deputy conservator of forests, told reporters that the sanctioning of 10.5 acres of reserve forest land to a trust headed by D. V. Sadananda Gowda, the Udupi MP and former state president of the BJP, will be reviewed and that Subrahmanya, the assistant conservator of forests, will submit a full report within a week.

The forest and the revenue departments conducted a survey after they received an application from the K. S. Gowda Education Trust, in which the land was marked as being outside the plantation area.

The land, which was not handed over to the Koraga colony or to the Panchayat, was easily handed over to a trust based on a letter written by an influential politician. This created a lot of resentment and authorities concerned have ordered that the case be reviewed. Mr. Kumar said that if any objection was found on review, the land will not be handed over to any private individual or trust.

Meanwhile, M. Gangadhara Gowda of Marakkada has lodged a complaint with the Lokayukta, stating that this is a clear case of land grabbing in the guise of a trust and that a file regarding this issue has been prepared in the Sullia Taluk office. The complainant has named the deputy conservator of forests of the Mangalore division, the tahsildar of Sullia Taluk, the president of the educational trust, MP D. V. Sadananda Gowda, and Sullia MLA Angara as being involved in the issue.

In his complaint, he alleged that the land, which was not allotted to the Koraga Colony or for the erection of a power sub station, was easily allotted to the educational trust along with a false report that this was a vacant plot although there is thick forest on it.

Sources close to Sadananda Gowda said that the complaint to the Lokayukta does not worry them much because Justice Santosh Hegde will retire in one month, after which the state government will appoint a pliant officer in his place.