An early-morning demolition drive by the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML), on December 20, has displaced hundreds of residents in Yelahanka, many of whom say they were given no notice or time to collect their belongings.
The demolition, carried out around 4.15 am in Waseem Layout and Fakeer Colony in north Bengaluru, left nearly 400 families homeless during one of the coldest spells the city has seen in years. BSWML officials said the houses were built on government land and were removed as part of an encroachment clearance drive. Residents, however, allege that they received no prior notice and were forcibly evicted with police presence, leaving them to spend nights on the streets under makeshift shelters.
Among the displaced is 24-year-old Sadiya, who is nine months pregnant. With her home razed, she and her family are now living under a makeshift tarpaulin shelter on the roadside. “It is time for my childbirth any day now. How will I take care of my newborn?” she asked.
According to residents, when BSWML officials BSWML arrived in the early hours of the morning with the police, they were not allowed to collect their belongings, including their documents and medical records.
Residents say children and elderly family members are at serious risk due to the cold, while snakes and other hazards pose additional threats at night.
“We are painters, brickworkers, mechanics. There are small children here. Nearly 1,000 people were living in these 200 houses,” said Joseph, a painter from the area. “Now everything has been demolished. Where are we supposed to go? There is no food, no water. No MLA or councillor has come to speak to us.”
The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) – formerly Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike – has not held local body elections in years.
When TNM visited the colonies, activists assisting the displaced residents were the ones distributing food and blankets.
Residents no longer have access to toilets, and women sometimes request neighbouring households for permission to use their toilets, said Bhanu Priya.
On Sunday, December 21, affected residents protested outside the residence of Revenue Minister Byre Gowda in Sahakar Nagar. They were reportedly asked to return the next day. Residents allege that there has been no response from the government since, and no steps taken to address their grievances.
BSWML has stated that the demolition was carried out to remove illegal structures built on public property. Its Chief Executive Officer, Karee Gowda, said the houses stood on approximately five acres of government land.
However, residents showed TNM their Aadhaar cards and electricity bills as proof of residence. Many claimed they had been living in the area for decades.
They also alleged excessive police presence during the demolition. “They brought ambulances and fire engines. Around 300 police officers came with six JCBs to beat us if we resisted,” said Bhanu Priya. “Why bring ambulances? In case we died from their beatings?”
Several young men sustained minor injuries during the police action and were taken in buses toward the Yelahanka Police Station. “They put us on a bus and dropped us off before even reaching the station,” said one young man, showing scars on his hand.
On December 24, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Bhaskar Rao urged the government to address the residents’ grievances in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
“This Congress government in Karnataka is heartless, mindless, blind to the problems of the poorest. Old men and women, mothers with children, pregnant women are out in the cold with no food, no water, no toilets. It’s been five days and there is no relief from the government,” said the former police commissioner.