Devanahalli Farmers' Victory

Let’s look at the victory of Devanahalli Farmers

ILS congratulates the farmers of Karnataka's Devanahalli taluk. After three years of protesting, the farmers have won a major victory when the state government announced that it will drop the acquisition of 1,777 acres of land in 13 villages. Let's have a look at how things unfolded:

History of corporate land grab in Karnataka

Bengaluru's peripheral lands have always been heavily targeted by state-supported corporate and real estate interests. Since 1991, Karnataka governments have facilitated corporate land grabs by transferring farmers' lands at minimal prices. All major parties - Congress, BJP and JD(S) - have maintained these anti-farmer policies.

BJP issues notices to acquire Devanahalli Land

In August 2021, the BJP government used its draconian land acquisition tool, the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB), to issue preliminary notices to acquire 1,777 acres of land from farmers in thirteen villages of Channarayapatna hobli in Devanahalli taluk, near Bengaluru, for developing a defence and aerospace park.

The Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act (LARR) mandates that consent must be obtained from 70 to 80% of the affected farmers and compensation should be provided at four times the market value. However, the government bypassed LARR’s provisions by using KIADB, a move that has been questioned by the Karnataka High Court.

Impact on farmers and protests

The 13 villages sustain 6,000+ agriculture and dairy jobs supporting thousands of families including Dalits who own 400 acres. These livelihoods employ people across gender and educational backgrounds, including those without formal education.

That same year, farmers began protesting, only to face brutal police suppression. In one instance, officers launched an unprovoked attack on August 15, 2022, against a small group holding a silent protest outside the Devanahalli taluk office. Around 4 a.m., police cut power to the site where farmers were sleeping, then charged in - leaving one farmer, Pramod, with an eye injury.

Congress's betrayal

CM Siddaramaiah, when in opposition, condemned the land acquisition as a highly criminal and corrupt move by the BJP government. In 2023 Congress won state elections on the promise to cancel acquisition if elected.

However, once coming to power the Congress government handed over another portion of this acquired land to the real estate giant, Brigade Group, to construct luxury apartments.

In July 2024, 200 protesting farmers were detained and in April 2025, the congress government went on to issue the final notification covering 10 of these 13 affected villages.

Farmers launch ‘Devanahalli Chalo’ protest

In June 2025, farmers from the Channarayapatna Land Acquisition Protest Committee, representing 13 villages, organized a ‘Devanahalli Chalo’ protest with coalition support from Samyukta Horata-Karnataka, a collective of farmers, Dalit, labour and women’s groups. They warned of an indefinite sit-in if the government didn’t withdraw the acquisition. In response, police used force that evening, detaining protesters and forcibly transporting them to Bengaluru.

Bhoomi Satyagraha and cancellation of land acquisition

Farmers then launched Bhoomi Satyagraha - with an indefinite sit-in at Bengaluru’s Freedom Park and hunger strikes. Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) representatives joined the protests, with senior leader Darshan Pal declaring it an "all-India struggle" supported nationally. Scholars and writers issued public letters demanding balanced regional-industrial policies. In July 2025, the government finally dropped the acquisition of land in Devanahalli.

CITU Karnataka President S Varalakshmi displayed blue, green and red shawls symbolizing Dalit, farmer and communist movements, asserting that solidarity among these progressive groups led to this victory.