Karnataka minister alleges Congress misused HMT land

Central Heavy Industries and Steel Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy accused the previous Congress state government of allowing about 175 acres of Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) land to be transferred to private hands between 1999 and 2004. He said the land, now occupied by residential projects such as Aquila Heights and Prestige Cansington Gardens, was illicitly handed over with the collusion of former urban‑development minister D.K. Shivkumar. Kumaraswamy claimed to have detailed maps and documents and instructed officials to prepare a report, stating, "Report milte hi uchit karwai ki jayegi" (Action will be taken as soon as the report is received). He urged the Karnataka government to recover the land and highlighted that the dispute is pending before the Supreme Court.

Kumaraswamy also noted that he had stopped any further transfer of HMT land after becoming chief minister in 2006, insisting that the state's public‑sector assets must not fall into private interests.