Row over government high school property in Chickpet continues

Revenue Department’s decision to sell or auction the property has drawn flak from citizens and politicians  

The row over the government high school property in Chickpet continued as Congress leader D.K. Shivakumar visited the spot on Saturday.

The Revenue Department is planning to auction or sell the building in contention, Rajatha Complex, which hosts a 77-year old government high school, along with other commercial establishments. The department has also refused to register the property under the school’s name as per the request of the Department of School Education and Literacy. The move has attracted a lot of flak from citizens and leaders of the opposition parties.

Mr. Shivakumar said that following reports in the media, he visited the school to inspect the problems. He said that he would speak further about the issue only after verifying the records.

In a detailed letter written by Vishal R., Commissioner, Department of Public Instruction, to the Revenue Department and the Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru Urban district, it is said that the land on which the complex is built belongs to the Education Department as the government school has been functioning there since 1945.

Later, in 1979, the land was leased out to a private party and in 2011, Rajatha Welfare Association secured the lease for a period of ten years. After the completion of the lease period, the association approached the Revenue Department to directly buy the land and the building as they would not be able to continue the lease for personal reasons.

The commissioner has requested the concerned departments not to hand over the property to a private party as it might hamper the educational activities of the students studying in the school.

Speaking to The Hindu about the further course of action, Mr Vishal said, “We are the beneficiaries of the Revenue Department. They would have to intervene and we are taking it up with them. The tahsildar will also be officially contacted by the DDPI. We will also write to the Deputy Commissioner to facilitate the Department of Education to retain the position of the school.”