“These farmers, who have been cultivating their land for almost a century, keep records dating back to the 1920s and 1930s. In recent months, however, many of them have received notices declaring their land as property of the Wagf, without any proof nor explanation,” Surya said in his letter.

“The scale of these claims is considerable. With nearly 1,500 acres designated as Waqf property in their village alone. Farmers claim that in addition to receiving notices, changes have been made to the RTC, pahani and mutation records for certain parcels without respecting the rules of law,” added Surya.

After the controversy over the notices, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said none of the farmers would be evicted and the notices issued to them would be withdrawn.

Responding to a question that similar notices had also been issued to farmers in Yadgir and Dharwad districts, the CM said, “I will request the Revenue Minister to look into the matter, nowhere will farmers be evicted.”

Seeking to clear up the “confusion” over the 1,200 acres in Honavada of Tikota taluk marked as Waqf property, MB Patil (minister in charge of industries and Vijayapura district) had recently said it was due to an “error” in notification in the official journal.

With contributions from the agency