Why the move to change a 1975 law for protection of parks in Bengaluru has sparked a controversy?

While the ruling Congress government maintains that the law strictly applies to public utility projects executed by government departments, statutory authorities, government companies, or local authorities, critics view it as opening the door to real estate development and infrastructure projects, such as roads through parks.

The Opposition has petitioned Governor Thawarchand Gehlot to reject the Bill and withhold his assent, warning that it will impact hundreds of parks in Bengaluru, a city already struggling with traffic woes while trying to preserve its ‘Garden City’ identity.

Bengaluru has around 1,353 parks, with the 240-acre Lalbagh Botanical Garden and the 197-acre Cubbon Park being the most iconic parks.

What is the law?

The amendment removes restrictions imposed in Sections 4 and 5 of the Karnataka Government Parks (Preservation) Act, 1975, by inserting a new sub-section under Section 5 to permit the 5 per cent land diversion.

Land diversion can be authorised based on the recommendations of a state-created High-Level Committee, provided it considers the utilisation of the park land or building to be “expedient in public interest”.

The Bill was passed on August 24 in both houses of the state legislature amid disruptions by the BJP over demands for the resignation of a minister who was chargesheeted by the CBI for alleged fund misappropriation.

A Congress leader claimed the law contains sufficient safeguards against arbitrary transfers and will apply exclusively to unused government park land.

BJP alleges real estate push for tunnel road project

The BJP has criticised the amendment as “full-scale real estate commercialisation” of public parks. The party alleged that the law is tailored to facilitate a controversial tunnel road project through Bengaluru’s iconic Lalbagh Botanical Garden, involving the Adani Group as the lowest bidder.

“The Congress government is preparing to carve up the lungs of our city by legalising the transfer of up to 5 per cent of public park lands,” stated Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka on social media. “They wrap this betrayal in the rhetoric of ‘public use,’ but make no mistake: this is a gateway to full-scale real estate commercialisation”.

Ashoka added, “Chief Minister D K Shivakumar has met industrialist Gautam Adani. For him, a law is being brought to grab 5 per cent of the garden space for the tunnel road project… The gardens of Lalbagh, Sankey Tank, and Cubbon Park are being destroyed.” He noted that the BJP is prepared for a public discussion on the issue, but argued that the government denied the legislature an opportunity for debate.

BJP Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya, who has filed a writ petition in the Karnataka High Court against the proposed 17 km tunnel road project running through six km of Lalbagh Botanical Garden, called the land diversion “deeply concerning”.

“This move is clearly designed to facilitate projects such as the Tunnel Road by circumventing the proceedings before the Honourable High Court,” Surya said, urging CM Shivakumar to reconsider the amendment and ensure no park land is diverted without strict environmental assessments and public consultation.

“In view of the serious constitutional, environmental and public interest concerns arising from the amendment, I respectfully request you to exercise the powers vested under Article 200 and refer it back to the State Legislature for reconsideration,” the BJP MP said in a letter to the Governor on August 26.

Referring to the 17 km tunnel road project, the BJP MP stated in his letter to the Governor that “the proposed project passes through Lalbagh and would reportedly require around 1.92 hectares, or nearly 5 acres of Lalbagh, for the construction of the tunnel and shaft.”

” Additionally, projects such as the proposed Hebbal Short Tunnel would require approximately 3.45 acres of Hebbal Lake, a crucial aquifer and an ecologically important green space in the city,” he stated.

Environmentalists warn of ecological damage

A N Yellappa Reddy, 90, a former government secretary for ecology and environment and long-term activist, addressed the risks in a letter to Karnataka Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh.

“Five per cent itself requires an explanation. Who arrived at this figure? Was it recommended by horticulturists, ecologists, planners, or any independent expert body? Is there a scientific study showing that 5 per cent of an established park can be disturbed without affecting its ecological character?” Reddy wrote.

Highlighting the irreplaceable nature of public green spaces, Reddy stressed that historical sites like Lalbagh cannot be evaluated purely by numerical metrics. “Lalbagh cannot be measured merely in acres and percentages. Its old trees, soil, water systems, biodiversity, and horticultural heritage have developed together over generations,” he wrote.

“Once an old tree is gone, a landscape fragmented, or an ecological system disturbed, no accounting exercise can restore what generations took to create… The question is not whether 5 per cent is acceptable. The question is whether we should open this door at all.”