The Karnataka Cabinet has approved the sale of approximately 3,666 acres of land in Ballari district to JSW Steel Ltd., a decision driven by legal obligations. The land in question, comprising 2,000.58 acres in Toranagall and Kurekuppa villages in Sandur taluk, and 1,666 acres in Toranagall, Musenayakanahalli, and Yarabanahalli, was subject to a lease-cum-sale agreement signed between the government and JSW Steel in 2006-2007.
Despite this agreement, successive governments have hesitated to finalize the sale deed. H.K. Patil, the current Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, who previously opposed the land transfer, stated that the government had “legal compulsions” to proceed with the sale deed due to an existing writ of mandamus.
In 2019, the land sale faced controversy when the JD(S)–Congress coalition was accused by the BJP of selling the land at an undervalued price. Patil had then pushed for the matter to be reviewed by a Cabinet sub-committee. B.S. Yediyurappa’s Cabinet later decided to proceed with the sale, but faced internal dissent. In 2021, the High Court intervened, directing the Chief Minister to reassess the Cabinet decision and allowing the petitioner to pursue further legal action.
The latest Cabinet decision follows a court directive compelling the state to honor the 2006-2007 lease-cum-sale agreement. Legal advice to the Cabinet highlighted that JSW Steel had used the land to establish its integrated steel plant, and that refusal to execute the sale deed solely due to the non-confirmation of a previous Cabinet meeting was not justifiable.
