MYSORE: Dismissing the controversy over ownership of land near Lalithamahal Palace, the Mysore royal family has stated that ownership of Kurubarahalli (survey no 4) and Alanahalli belongs to the Wadiyars.
"The land is included in the list of immovable properties, securities and cash balance held by His Highness, the Maharaja of Mysore as private property as on Jan 26, 1950 declared by then Governor General of India," Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, wife of the scion of Mysore royal family Srikantadutta Narasimharaja Wadiyar, told Express.
She was reacting to a report, carried on September 10, on the row over transfer on 102 acre of land by Tahasildar Geetha Krishna; for which an inquiry has been ordered.
Pramoda Devi Wadiyar said that the Governor General's notification granted the Wadiyars an ownership of 1563 acre and 31 guntas of land at Kurubarahalli.
"Of the total land, large stretches have been donated or gifted to people and institutions," she said.
"The state government sent a gazette notification to the royal family in 1971, seeking acquisition of land.
If we are not the owners, then why would the state government issue an acquisition notice to us?" asked Pramoda Devi Wadiyar.
She further said that the state government was not a party to the agreement. The Union of India was responsible for the declaration of the royal family's assets, after the princely state joined the Indian Union. Admitting that certain parts of the land were donated or gifted to institutions and public members, she said: " We want a fair survey on land available, minus the donated lands under 'Aramane Kawal' - private assets of Maharaja, and its transfer to the Wadiyar Khata. We have been demanding the survey for two years." "There are illegal encroachments on our property. The administration should conduct a survey, vacate the encroachments and demarcate the extent of remaining land under the royal family," she said.
