Thousands gather at Lalbagh against park-land Bill and tunnel road plan

At Lalbagh on Sunday morning, 91-year-old environmentalist A.N. Yellappa Reddy joined thousands of residents, students, resident welfare associations and activists opposing the park-land amendment Bill and the tunnel road planned beneath the garden.

Protesters called for the Karnataka government to withdraw the Karnataka Government Parks (Preservation) (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The Bill allows the government to alienate up to 5% of park land for public projects; opponents fear it could be used for the tunnel road project passing below Lalbagh. The proposal was cleared by the State earlier this month in a move allowing up to 5% of park land for public projects.

Reddy questioned the rationale and planning process for the tunnel road. College student Adarsh M. urged the government to improve Metro connectivity, public buses and roads instead of reducing green space. BJP MPs L.S. Tejasvi Surya, C.N. Manjunath, Shobha Karandlaje and P.C. Mohan attended the rally; participants also gathered around Lalbagh’s Peninsular Gneiss rock.

Surya said protests would extend to other city parks. Manjunath and Karandlaje urged the Governor not to assent to the Bill.