Pics: Umesh Marpalli
Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (HB/SP)

Udupi, Dec 17: An 81-year-old farmer, Shankar Hegde, and his wife, Susheela Shedti (75), residents of Beloor village of Kundapur taluk, addressed a press conference here on Friday December 16, wherein Hegde alleged that Jayasheela Shedti (Shankar Hegde's cousin) and her family members have been pestering his family for property since the last several decades.

Shankar’s ancestral property had been partitioned in the year 1973. The property in dispute measures an acre, and the partition deed was registered in the office of sub-registrar at Kundapur. Shankar Hegde was given a share of 46 cents of land, while four cents were given to his brother, the late Shivaram Hegde, with the balance 50 cents going to the share of his cousin sister, Jayasheela Shedti, the couple stated.

Now Shankar is maintaining his share of coconut and arecanut plantation, which has been inherited by him and is the only source of his family's livelihood. There is no natural boundary in between the two properties.

Shankar complained that his cousin Jayasheela has been harassing him and his wife since the last 42 years. He alleged that Jayasheela had forcibly entered his property and taken away crop of areca nuts grown there. "Jayasheela also has threatened us of bringing more coolies to pluck coconuts grown my plantation too," he said.

A civil suit over the property dispute is pending in court since several decades. Jayasheela also has filed complaint in Brahmavar police station. After he recently got a call from Brahmavar police station to meet the police circle inspector there, Hegde said he went there and met the inspector, Shrikant. "I was verbally abused by police circle inspector Shrikant, who used bad words at my family and threatened to endanger my life," he claimed.

Hegde said that the police and his cousin seem to show aggression towards him and his wife as they know that there is no one nearby to protect them, adding that both his daughters live in Bengaluru. He, however, said that the couple is getting moral support from their neighbours to live on.

He also said that a survey procedure was done on his property to check the total land holding, and the concerned found that his land measures exactly 46 cents. Shankar Hegde said that having been fed up by unrelenting torment at the hands of his cousin, he and his wife have been actively considering the option of ending their lives. With tears rolling down his eyes he told the media persons that he badly needs relief from the endless harassment from his cousin.

Shankar Hegde said he had met the superintedent of police, K T Balakrishna, and submitted a memorandum to him. The SP contacted Brahmavar police circle inspector immediately and took him to task. Thereafter, Hegde received a call from Brahmavar police station asking him to come there for discussions on a possible compromise.

Shankar Hegde said that he and his wife have reposed faith on the SP. "If he belies our trust, we will be left with no other alternative but to commit suicide, in which case we will leave behind a death note with names of our tormentors," he added.