Kumaraswamy demands halt to NICE toll collection, cites ₹4,756 crore collected on incomplete project
Synopsis
Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has called for an immediate stop to NICE toll collection on the Bengaluru-Mysuru corridor, citing ₹4,756.48 crore collected since 2008 on a project whose original cost was just ₹1,583.76 crore. With the Karnataka High Court calling the project's ODP changes a 'fraud on statute' and the Supreme Court refusing a stay, the political and legal pressure on the Karnataka government is sharply escalating ahead of a 2 November hearing.
Key Takeaways
Kumaraswamy demanded an immediate halt to NICE toll collection at a press conference in Bengaluru on 7 October 2026 . ₹4,756.48 crore has been collected in tolls since 2008 , against an original project cost of ₹1,583.76 crore .
Annual toll collections rose from ₹5.59 crore in 2008-09 to ₹734.97 crore in 2024-25.
The Karnataka High Court ruled on 29 July that ODP-driven changes to the project amounted to a 'fraud on statute and the Constitution'; the Supreme Court has not stayed the judgment.
NICE allegedly expanded the toll road land allocation from 6,999 acres to 9,468 acres without Cabinet approval.
The Supreme Court has adjourned the NICE Special Leave Petition for further hearing to 2 November .
Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy on Wednesday, 7 October 2026, demanded an immediate halt to toll collection on the NICE (Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise) road in Bengaluru, alleging that the company had collected ₹4,756.48 crore in toll revenue since 2008 despite the project remaining incomplete. Speaking at a press conference at the Janata Dal (Secular) headquarters, JP Bhavan, Kumaraswamy called on the Karnataka state government to take urgent action and urged commuters to stop paying tolls.
Scale of the Controversy
The original project cost of the NICE road — part of the Bengaluru-Mysuru Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) — was pegged at ₹1,583.76 crore. According to Kumaraswamy, annual toll collections started at a modest ₹5.59 crore in 2008-09 and climbed sharply to ₹734.97 crore in 2024-25, with the cumulative total reaching ₹4,756.48 crore between 2008 and 2025. He alleged the company has additionally generated ₹384 crore through land sales, ₹108 crore from advances on joint development agreements, and ₹338 crore from convention centres — all allegedly in violation of the original Framework Agreement.
'How many more years will this alleged collection continue? They say there are still another 10 years of toll collection. On what basis? This cannot continue,' Kumaraswamy said at the press conference.
Legal and Contractual Background
Kumaraswamy traced the controversy to a Toll Concession Agreement (TCA) signed on 4 September 2000 between the Karnataka State Public Works Department and NICE, which itself was governed by a Framework Agreement (FWA) dated 3 April 1997. The FWA required construction of a four-lane concrete road, service roads, and maintenance areas before toll collection could begin. He alleged these conditions were never fully met, yet toll collection commenced in 2008.
He also referred to a Cabinet decision taken under the S.M. Krishna government on 4 November 2002, which stipulated that toll collection would be withdrawn if the four-lane concrete road was not completed within six years — a condition he alleged was not enforced.
Court Proceedings and High Court Judgment
Kumaraswamy cited the Karnataka High Court's judgment of 29 July, which, according to him, ruled that altering the original agreement through the Outline Development Plan (ODP) of 12 February 2004 — without obtaining Cabinet approval — amounted to a 'fraud on statute and the Constitution.' The ODP changes, he alleged, expanded the land earmarked for the Peripheral Road from 2,193 acres to 2,747 acres and the toll road component from 6,999 acres to 9,468 acres.
NICE has challenged the High Court judgment before the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition. Kumaraswamy noted that the Supreme Court has not granted a stay on the High Court judgment and has adjourned the matter for further hearing to 2 November. He argued that, in the absence of a stay, continued toll collection is legally untenable.
Lake Encroachment Allegations
Kumaraswamy also levelled fresh allegations concerning lake areas within the project corridor. He said engineer Kapil Sharma had, in 2021, used the Dishaank application to identify instances where roads had allegedly been built over lake areas and had filed a formal complaint. Documents relating to alleged lake encroachments were released at the press conference.
He added that in the H.T. Somashekar Reddy case before the Supreme Court, NICE had sought 6,999 acres, including 2,193 acres for the Peripheral Road — a land list that did not include lake areas at the time, raising questions about subsequent inclusions.
Political Dimension and What Comes Next
Kumaraswamy stated that the JD(S) and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda had pursued the NICE issue for nearly two decades and described the current moment as a 'decisive stage.' He also questioned the shifting position of Congress MLA T.B. Jayachandra, who chaired a House committee in 2016 that recommended taking over the NICE project and recovering excess land, but reportedly wrote to the Chief Minister in May 2025 seeking completion of the project — a reversal Kumaraswamy alleged raises questions about political motivations. The Supreme Court hearing on 2 November is expected to be the next critical milestone in the long-running dispute.
Point of View
And collections are still climbing at over ₹700 crore a year. Yet the deeper issue is institutional: a 1997 Framework Agreement and a 2000 concession contract both allegedly violated, a 2002 Cabinet safeguard never enforced, and a 2004 ODP change made without Cabinet clearance. That the Karnataka High Court used language as strong as 'fraud on statute and the Constitution' — and the Supreme Court chose not to stay that finding — gives Kumaraswamy's demand unusual legal traction. The political subtext is also worth watching: the JD(S) has everything to gain from reviving a controversy that implicates successive Congress and BJP state governments, and the flip-flop by Congress MLA T.B. Jayachandra on the project's future is a ready-made narrative hook.
NationPress
7 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is Kumaraswamy demanding a halt to NICE toll collection?
Kumaraswamy alleges that NICE has collected ₹4,756.48 crore in tolls since 2008 despite not completing the project as required under its original agreements. He argues that the Karnataka High Court's judgment — calling ODP-driven project changes a 'fraud on statute' — and the Supreme Court's refusal to stay that judgment make continued toll collection legally untenable.
What is the NICE road project?
The NICE (Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise) project is a long-running infrastructure initiative in Karnataka involving the Bengaluru-Mysuru Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) — an expressway, peripheral road network, townships, and related infrastructure. It has been mired in controversy over land acquisition, alleged excess land use, and non-completion of agreed works.
What did the Karnataka High Court rule on the NICE project?
According to Kumaraswamy, the Karnataka High Court's judgment of 29 July held that altering the original agreement through the Outline Development Plan (ODP) of 12 February 2004 — without obtaining Cabinet approval — amounted to a 'fraud on statute and the Constitution.' NICE has challenged the judgment before the Supreme Court, which has not issued a stay and has listed the matter for 2 November.
How much land is at the centre of the dispute?
Kumaraswamy alleged that the ODP changes expanded the land for the Peripheral Road from 2,193 acres to 2,747 acres and the toll road component from 6,999 acres to 9,468 acres — without Cabinet approval. He also cited allegations that roads were constructed over lake areas within the project corridor.
What happens next in the NICE case?
The Supreme Court has adjourned NICE's Special Leave Petition challenging the Karnataka High Court judgment to 2 November for further hearing. Kumaraswamy has called on the Karnataka state government to act immediately on toll collection in light of the High Court ruling, while also appealing to commuters not to pay tolls.
