Karnataka Forms 11-Member SIT To Probe Alleged Art Of Living Land Encroachment In Bengaluru | Video

Bengaluru: The Karnataka government has  formed a 11-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by IAS officer Amalan Aditya Biswas to probe into the alleged encroachment of lands by Art of Living (AoL) and its associated organisations headed by Sri Sri Ravishankar Guruji.

The SIT has been directed to investigate all the allegations and submit a report to the government within the next three months.

Speaking to reporters, Deputy Chief Minister Dr G Parameshwar said that the AOL possesses 270 acres of land on Kanakapura road, of which, around 150 acres belong to Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe(ST) communities. Earlier also, there were complaints against AoL and the SIT will probe into the allegations.

The GO issued to form the SIT has stated that a survey wa conducted in October 2005 under the supervision of the Assistant Director of Land Records, which followed a court direction had found that the AoL Foundation and few individuals associated with the organisations had taken over 290 acres of `gomal' (cattle grazing land) systematically in the Bengaluru Urban district. The land in Kaggalipura, BM Kaval, Agara and other villages in Uttarahalli hobli were acquired through grants, lease arrangements and other related transactions, including disputed grant claims, which resulted in encroachment allegations.

The Government Order has asked the SIT to probe into allegations of all government lands mentioned in the writ petition, which resulted in the survey of the properties held by AoL and its associated organisations, which led to the earlier survey. The SIT should conduct a detailed inquiry by examining all relevant records and documents including those related to the government land grants, verify the beneficiaries, find their legal heirs and identify any forged or fraudulent records and check for violations in the land grant processes.

The AoL has denied any discrepancies during acquisition of land for the Foundation. ``We welcome the constitution of the SIT. A thorough and impartial investigation will establish the facts and bring the matter to a definitive conclusion,'' the AoL added.