Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan visited and inspected the evacuation site at Kogilu Layout of Yelahanka Constituency in Bengaluru City. (Credit: B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan X)
The eviction row in Karnataka intensified Sunday after AICC general secretary K C Venugopal conveyed the Congress high command’s “serious concerns” about the demolition in Bengaluru to the Siddaramaiah government, triggering accusations from the Opposition BJP that he was acting as a “super CM”.
“Spoke to Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D K Shivakumar regarding the demolition of unauthorised constructions in Kogilu village, Bengaluru. Conveyed the AICC’s serious concern that such actions should have been undertaken with far greater caution, sensitivity, and compassion, keeping the human impact at the centre. They have assured that they will personally engage with the affected families, put in place an appropriate mechanism for addressing grievances, and ensure rehabilitation and relief for those impacted,” Venugopal said in a post on X on Saturday.
Spoke to Karnataka CM @siddaramaiah and DCM @DKShivakumar regarding the demolition of unauthorised constructions in Kogilu village, Bengaluru.
Conveyed the AICC’s serious concern that such actions should have been undertaken with far greater caution, sensitivity, and…
— K C Venugopal (@kcvenugopalmp) December 27, 2025
Though the demolition was carried out a week ago and BJP leader Bhaskar Rao first raised it on December 23, the issue attracted widespread attention on December 26 after Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan accused the Siddaramaiah government of running a “bulldozer raj” in Karnataka.
“The bulldozing of Faqir Colony and Waseem Layout in Bengaluru, uprooting Muslim families who have lived there for years, exposes the brutal normalisation of ‘bulldozer raj’. Sadly, the Sangh Parivar’s anti-minority politics is now being executed under a Congress government in Karnataka. When a regime rules through fear and brute force, Constitutional values and human dignity become the first casualties. All secular and democratic forces must rally together to resist and defeat this insidious trend,” Vijayan wrote on X.
The Karnataka government defended its action, stating that the land had been notified for solid waste management and that the surroundings of an abandoned quarry — where the houses were demolished — were unsafe for human habitation.
Shivakumar on Saturday criticised Vijayan for commenting on the issue “without knowing the facts”. “We are not into bulldozer (justice). We have not done anything using bulldozers. We tried to vacate the encroachers and protect a public place. These are political gimmicks ahead of state elections in Kerala,” he said.
On Sunday, Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka termed Venugopal a “super CM”. “Expressing a party opinion is one thing, but issuing moral sermons and applying pressure on a state government is blatant overreach and an insult to federalism,” he said.
State BJP chief B Y Vijayendra also targeted the Congress, saying directions from Venugopal went “beyond political hypocrisy”. “It is a direct affront to the people of Karnataka, who voted for a government in Bengaluru and not for an invisible authority issuing commands from Delhi,” he said.
Defending Venugopal, Shivakumar said on Sunday, “As a leader of a national party, he has every right to advise the government on its functioning. He is not interfering in the administration.”
Meanwhile, state Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan visited the demolition site on Sunday and said both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar would convene a meeting on the issue on Monday. “I am sure there will be some good news (for those who lost their houses) after that,” he said.
Defending the government’s action, Khan said several families had been living illegally in poor conditions for many years. “Three to four eviction notices were issued to them, and the government made alternative arrangements in five choultries for the affected families. A four-acre parcel of land was also identified for them to build houses, but they were not willing to relocate,” he said.
Earlier this month, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara had said that the Congress government was taking “decisive action” in drug-related offences and was prepared to take strong steps, including bulldozing the homes of drug peddlers. However, he seemingly backtracked on his remarks after facing flak from his party colleague and former Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.