Mangaluru : Dakshina Kannada district in-charge Minister B. Ramanath Rai on Monday said that the allegations of land grab made against him by the former Congressman Harikrishna Bantwal are baseless. He added that the land in his possession were legally acquired.

A staunch follower of senior Congress leader B. Janardhan Poojary, Mr. Bantwal was upset with the Congress during the last elections to the Legislative Council as he was denied party ticket. He has now joined the Bharatiya Janata Party saying that loyalty has no value in Congress.

Mr. Bantwal had made one specific allegation against Mr. Rai on November 4 that the latter’s wife, Dhanabhagya Rai, got 2.04 acres of land sanctioned under Akrama-Sakrama scheme in Mani village in 2001 under the name Shyla R. Rai. Another one acre of land was allotted to her without making any application, he had said.

Responding to this, Mr. Rai on Monday said that his wife’s name was Shyla alias Dhanabhagya.

Her family had been enjoying 7.9 acres of land in Mani village for many years. Kumki land measuring 3.04 acres abutting their patta land was allotted to his wife, the Minister maintained.

Mr. Bantwal had also raised another issue of unknown persons encroaching upon about 10 acres of government land right opposite Mr. Rai’s house at Kallige village in Bantwal taluk.

To this, Mr. Rai said that his family had acres of land in Kallige village and a majority of them went to tenants during the land reforms.

The remaining land was divided between five brothers and he bought all his brothers’ share later.

In all, he has 15.22 acres of land in Kallige village in which he has raised rubber plantation on eight acres of land.