• Trust was sanctioned 10.26 acres of land in 1984 for construction of Kalyana Mantapa and religious activities
• Government had plans for Park and Horticulture farm
• Landed property valued at more than Rs.200 crore

By S.T. Ravikumar

Mysore/Mysuru: In yet another action for reclaiming its landed properties which are either encroached upon or in illegal possession of individuals, Trusts or Organisations, the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) has issued a showcause notice to Gokulam Kalyana Mantapa Trust, having office on 3rd Main Road, Yadavagiri, in connection with  possession of  10 acres and 26 guntas of land along KRS Road, coming under Maragowdanahalli Survey Nos. 7,8 and 9 in Kasaba Hobli of Mysuru taluk.

Details

Gokulam Kalyana Mantapa Trust, on Jan. 23,1984 had  applied to the then CITB (City Improvement Trust Board) seeking allotment of  the said land  that is located behind ESI Hospital on KRS Road, for construction of a Kalyana Mantapa, a Guest House and organising cultural programmes. Following the application, the then CITB on Feb. 2,1984 decided to sanction 10.26 acre land in Maragowdanahalli Survey Numbers 7,8 and 9  to the Trust, with the condition that the structure should come up in two years.

However, the then CITB Chairman issued a written note to the Trust President on Apr. 4,1984, saying that the said 10.26 acre land has been sold to the Trust for Rs. 2,26,644. But this note was against the decision taken by the CITB at its meeting held on Feb. 4,1984, during which no mention was made concerning the sale of the said land. Later, the Trust, based on the CITB Chairman’s note, made the ordered payment (Rs. 2,26,644) for the land to the CITB and sought the Board to hand over the land to the Trust. Thereafter, the CITB issued an unregistered agreement to the Trust on July 9,1984, mentioning that the land in question should be used only for Kalyana Mantapa, educational, religious and such other purposes. The agreement was jointly signed by the then CITB Chairman B.K. Puttaiah and the then Gokulam Kalyana Mantapa Trust President.

MGP files petition

Questioning the agreement, the Mysore Grahakara Parishat (MGP) filed a petition in the High Court (Petition No. 25414/2005). The HC, which heard the petition on Feb.16, 2006, directed MUDA (formerly CITB) Commissioner to take appropriate action as per law concerning the said land.

Subsequent to the Court order, the MUDA Commissioner issued a showcause notice to the Trust on Feb. 7, 2007, questioning  why the land should not be taken back by MUDA for violation of the conditions laid down during the sanction of land.

Replying in writing to the Notice, the Trust President on May 9, 2007 claimed that the land is under the complete ownership of the Trust and MUDA had no rights to question the Trust over land usage. The Trust also claimed that the MUDA’s notice had no legal sanction.

Rampant violation

Later, MUDA sought a legal opinion from its Legal consultant. As per the legal opinion, the note issued by the then CITB Chairman was in violation of the CITB resolution passed at its meeting on Feb. 4, 1984 and  also there was rampant violation of the purpose for which the land was sanctioned and as such, the MUDA has the right  to reclaim the land after issuing a  notice to the Trust.

But since then, nothing moved beyond seeking legal opinion, according to the records.

But on Mar. 28, 2007, the Government wrote a letter to the then MUDA Commissioner directing to take action on the plea made by  MGP. The Government then also questioned MUDA on why no action has been taken so  far in this regard.

As per the records, the Secretary of the Housing and Urban Development Department in a letter written on Aug. 4,1984, had clearly mentioned that the said land in Maragowdanahalli Survey Nos.7,8 and 9 should be reserved only for the purpose of park and horticulture activities and that the land should not be allotted to any small organisations.

The then CITB Chairman on Feb. 6,1989, wrote a letter to the Secretary of the Housing and Urban Development Department saying the land (10.26 acres) was valued at Rs. 3,84,400 at the rate of Rs.36,000 per acre, following which the then Land Acquisition Officer, after making a calculation,  fixed the price at Rs. 2,26,644, which the Trust paid to the CITB based on the written note issued by the CITB Chairman. Thereafter, the said landed property was handed over to the Trust by the Engineering Section of the CITB, when in fact only the Land Acquisition Section had the powers to hand over such a bulk land measuring a large area. This was in clear violation of the norms as the land was also sanctioned without the permission of the Government.

Not legally registered

As such, the sanction of the  land could be cancelled citing violation of rules and norms and also for the reason that the said land comes under industrial area. Besides, the land in question has not been legally registered with the concerned authority. It has been found that the land was not allotted according to the terms of allotment of CA sites that came into force following the introduction of Karnataka Urban Development Authorities  Act,1987.

Taking into account all the above mentioned factors, the MUDA has come to the conclusion that the Gokulam Kalyana Mantapa Trust is in illegal possession of the said land (10.26 acres).

Now  the MUDA has issued another  showcause notice to Gokulam Kalyana Mantapa Trust, based on the Feb.16, 2006 High Court ruling,  asking it  to reply in writing within the stipulated time. The notice also said that any failure to reply, will be taken as granted that the Trust has nothing to reply and that the MUDA will go ahead on initiating legal action.

MUDA Commissioner defends notice

Defending the issuance of notice to Gokulam Kalyana Mantapa Trust, MUDA Commissioner Dr. D.B. Natesh said that the notice has been issued for violation of purpose of the land for which it was sanctioned.

Listing out the violations, he said that the Trust has claimed that the land was ‘purchased’ by it, when actually the land was only sanctioned to it. Also, the Trust had paid money less than the value, violation of purpose, failure to register legally and violation of  Government norms in allotment of bulk land, among others. As these violations have been discovered after going through the records, the Trust has been issued showcause notice, he noted.

Trust seeks more time to reply

Meanwhile, the current President of Gokulam Kalyana Mantapa Trust P. Vishwanath, who is also the city’s first Mayor, has contended that the Trust had not violated any land allotment norms and the conditions laid out at the time of sanction.

Vishwanath told Star of Mysore that the Trust has sought more time for replying to all the issues raised by MUDA concerning the 10.26 acres of land behind ESI hospital.

Asserting that the Trust had not violated any norms of bulk land allotment, he maintained that the land is being used only for the purpose it was sought.

Arguing that the MUDA Commissioner has issued the notice because the Trust had applied for start of an Educational Institution and construction of buildings, he wondered why the MUDA did not take action all these 38 years if there was indeed any violation of norms or conditions.

Pointing out that the 3-day duration  given by MUDA to reply to its 4-page showcause notice dated Apr. 13,  2022 is too little a time, Vishwanath  said that the Trust has sought more time to file reply along with all supporting documents and necessary clarifications.