Kogilu Demolition: Victims Protest in Bengaluru, Demand Immediate Rehabilitation

Bengaluru: Residents displaced by the demolition in Kogilu staged a protest demanding immediate rehabilitation, as hundreds of affected families continue to live without proper shelter more than two weeks after their homes were razed.

The protest was organised under the banner of the Kogilu Layout Slum Residents Struggle Committee. Demonstrators said the families have been living in the open for the past 16 days, surviving under tarpaulin sheets amid harsh weather conditions.

On December 20, the Congress-led Karnataka government carried out the demolition of houses in the Kogilu area of Bengaluru, rendering hundreds homeless. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had announced that the displaced families would be rehabilitated by January 1, but no concrete measures have been implemented so far, protesters alleged.

Addressing the gathering, CPI M Bengaluru North Secretariat member Comrade Hulli Umesh criticised the delay in rehabilitation, while AIDWA leader Comrade Gouramma highlighted the hardships faced by women and children. Leaders from other progressive organisations also addressed the protest, expressing solidarity with the affected residents and reiterating demands for immediate housing and basic amenities.