‘Provide land to landless to honour H.S. Doreswamy’

A convention to mark the fifth death anniversary of freedom fighter H. S. Doreswamy held in the city on Tuesday, demanded that the State government form an empowered committee to examine the demands of the landless and homeless in the State.

Noor Sridhar, president, Karnataka Janashakti, who worked closely with Doreswamy in his last days, said distributing land to the landless and housing to the homeless was the only way to honour Mr. Doreswamy.

“What we are asking for is the basic right. Five acres of dry land or two acres of irrigated land and a site for the homeless. Doreswamy had hoped that Siddaramaiah would be able to fulfil this promise. But all governments have failed the landless,” he said.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who sent a written message to the event, said once he was back from New Delhi, he would discuss the demands.

Teesta Setalvad, chairperson of Gauri Memorial Trust, said the Congress government in the State had many unfulfilled promises. “From repealing communal laws brought in by the BJP to lack of action on hate speeches, Congress has many unkept promises. While the Congress party in the centre has been talking pro-Palestine, why have pro-Palestine protests been banned in the State? The government needs to provide land to the landless and houses to the homeless and honour Doreswamy’s legacy,” she said, adding the civil society in the State needs to fight Special Intensive Revision (SIR). “We demand a social audit of electoral rolls and that the Election Commission provide rolls in a machine-readable format,” she said.

Dr. H. S. Doreswamy Memorial Trust has also demanded that a memorial be built for the freedom fighter at Freedom Park, where he was jailed during the Quit India movement and led several protests at the site. They have also demanded that a prominent circle and a metro station be named after the freedom fighter.

Indira Krishnappa, chairperson, H. S. Doreswamy Memorial Trust, said that following the suggestions to institute an award for an activist in the name of the freedom fighter, the trust will soon decide the modalities.