Karnataka High Court Calls Bengaluru-Mysuru Corridor a Major Scam, Orders Probe

The Karnataka High Court has made a significant ruling regarding the Bengaluru-Mysuru Infrastructure Corridor Project (BMICP), labeling it as potentially one of the largest scams in the state’s history. This decision came on Wednesday when the court dismissed appeals from Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE) and the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB), which sought to challenge a previous ruling. The court’s Division Bench, consisting of Justices DK Singh and TM Nadaf, upheld a prior judgment that invalidated the acquisition of land belonging to certain farmers, citing the authorities' failure to establish compensation for over twenty years. The judges expressed their concerns about the project, stating that it exemplifies how a government, which is supposed to act as a steward of natural resources for its citizens, can allow private interests to thrive at the expense of public welfare and constitutional mandates. They emphasized that the project has primarily benefited its backers while leaving landowners and the general public at a disadvantage, deprived of their rightful compensation as stipulated under Article 300A of the Indian Constitution.

The BMICP was initiated through an agreement between the Karnataka government and NICE in April 1997, with plans to acquire approximately 20,193 acres of land between 1998 and 2009 under the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Act of 1966. However, the compensation for many landowners remained unresolved, even after a staggering 23 years. A single judge of the High Court had previously annulled the acquisition process concerning the petitioners’ lands, asserting that the government could not indefinitely postpone compensation determinations. The court clarified that the petitioners were not disputing the BMICP's legitimacy or the acquisition notifications, which had already received the Supreme Court's endorsement. Instead, their grievance stemmed from the authorities' failure to finalize compensation, thus creating a new basis for legal action.