Art of Living accused of encroaching on public land, gets court notice
Art of Living says it legally acquired the land and obtained government approval, alleges conspiracy to tarnish its image
The Karnataka High Court has issued notice to spiritual guru Ravi Shankar’s Art of Living ashram at Kanakapura in the state on charges that it built a housing complex on a storm water drain and a lake.
A divisional bench of Justice R Nataraj and Justice KV Aravind on Thursday heard a public interest litigation filed by residents of Udipalya village near the ashram regarding allegation of land encroachment.
The judges ordered that notices be served to the respondents, including the revenue department and the Bengaluru Metropolitan Task Force among others, and sought the government’s response.
Allegation of no action
The PIL alleged encroachment in Kaggalipura village in Bengaluru South district by the Art of Living foundation.
The petitioner alleged that no action had been taken on the complaints given to the revenue department and the police. They urged that the government be directed to clear these buildings.
Earlier, in response to allegations by SR Hiremath, an RTI activist and head of the Samaj Parivartana Samudaya organisation, the Art of Living clarified that it had not encroached on any land.
It said the land owned by the ashram was acquired legally and it had obtained government approval. It said there was a conspiracy to tarnish the Art of Living’s image.