Disputed 5-acre Bengaluru land for disabled may become CM’s skydeck site

A year after handing over sites to 230 physically challenged beneficiaries in Bengaluru, BDA has now claimed ownership. The matter is now before the Karnataka High Court.

Members of Sri Maruthi Handicapped Welfare Association stand next to the BDA eviction notice on the land allotted to them by the district administration.

Written by: Kiran Parashar

3 min readBengaluruJun 18, 2026 04:35 PM IST First published on: Jun 18, 2026 at 04:33 PM IST

A contentious 5-acre Bengaluru property may soon be the site of Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar’s dream project, the skydeck.

On March 1 last year, 230 residential sites in Challaghatta village were handed over to physically challenged beneficiaries picked by the Sri Maruthi Handicapped Welfare Association. But on April 10 this year, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) issued notices claiming that the land was meant for the development of Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout (NPKL). The aggrieved beneficiaries moved the Karnataka High Court, which ordered a status quo on April 21.

A BDA officer has now hinted that the land parcel could be used for the skydeck, a tourism project with food courts and play arenas, though another senior officer said that it was too early to speculate as soil and rock tests are still pending.

Sites demarcated, beneficiaries picked

The Indian Express has access to property documents that show that in 2010, the special deputy commissioner of Bengaluru urban district granted 5 acres of land in Challaghatta village to Sri Maruthi Handicapped Welfare Association, a body with 750 members registered in 2005. The association formed a layout plan, which was approved by an executive officer of the taluk panchayat.

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The association demarcated 230 sites measuring 20 by 30 feet each. A committee headed by a deputy commissioner was then formed to identify genuine beneficiaries for allotment. The panel then selected 230 beneficiaries.

On March 1 last year, the state government held a programme where local MLA S T Somashekar and others handed over mortgage deeds in favour of the beneficiaries. Later, the e-khata (a property record) was issued, and the beneficiaries also paid property tax.

Year later, BDA shocker

On April 10 this year, BDA officials allegedly entered the area with notices threatening to demolish constructions on the property, claiming that it belonged to NPKL.

M J Rangaswamy, president of Sri Maruthi Handicapped Welfare Association, told The Indian Express that they were shocked when they received the notices. “All the beneficiaries are government-recognised disabled persons. They have more than 50 per cent disability. We then approached the Karnataka High Court. When the mortgage deeds were distributed, everyone came to take credit. Now, no one is coming to our help. The BDA and NPKL division officials were aware of the land allotted to us. They participated in the event when mortgage deeds were distributed. But now, they have sent notices,” he added.

BDA defends move

Ashok Bagi, assistant executive engineer, BDA, Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout division, told The Indian Express that the notices were issued based on the directions of the BDA planning authority. “The area has been marked for road construction,” he added.

A senior BDA official said that this parcel of land was allotted to the BDA by the Bengaluru urban district deputy commissioner in 2008, and the same was allotted to the association. “The association was aware of the issue, and they did not do anything for all these years. They could have approached the deputy commissioner seeking alternative land. We will file our response at the Karnataka High Court,” the official added.