Farmers from Adavi Bantenahalli, a village in Hassan taluk, staged a protest outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office here on Monday against the measures initiated by the Forest Department to evict them from the Seegegudda Kaval forest area, near their village. The protesters condemned the arrest of the office-bearers of the Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha (KPRS) and fellow farmers for their alleged role in the protest staged recently against the officials.
The officials, led by Ravindra Kumar, Assistant Conservator of Forests, had launched a drive on Friday last at Adavi Bantenahalli to recover the forestland, which was being cultivated by local farmers for several decades. Farmers, under the banner of the Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha (KPRS) had then protested against the Forest Department and succeeded in stopping the officials from evicting the farmers. Following a complaint by the Forest officials, the Hassan Rural police had arrested H.R. Naveen Kumar, KPRS district unit president M.G. Pruthvi, office-bearer of KPRS Raghavendra and Virupaksha, a farmer. They were later remanded to judicial custody.
The farmers demanded that the cases filed against the protesters be withdrawn and the Forest Department stop evicting small and marginal farmers. Meanwhile, Janata Dal (Secular) leader H.D. Revanna has offered support to the farmers’ cause. He met the protesters and took the officials concerned to task for their action. “The State government in the Legislative Assembly has repeatedly said that farmers who had encroached upon less than five acres of land would not be disturbed. On the other hand, the officials are trying to evict small and marginal farmers. The farmers have records to show that they have been cultivating the land for many decades. The Forest Department has not taken the trouble to develop the land in to a forest. They do not have adequate records to claim their right over the land. Such being the case, how can they evict farmers,” he wanted to know.
Mr. Revanna appealed to Deputy Commissioner Umesh H. Kusugal and Superintendent of Police Ravi D. Channannavar to drop the cases filed against farmers. He warned that H.D. Deve Gowda, MP and national president of Janata Dal (S), would stage a dharna in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office here on Thursday, if the demands of farmers were not met by then.
