Soon after winning the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday described its victory as a mandate against the Congress government’s plan to split the civic body.
BJP State president Pralhad Joshi told presspersons, “It [election verdict] is a tight slap on the Congress government for trying to divide the BBMP and ignoring the development of Bengaluru.”
Union Law Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda said it would be “height of foolishness” if Chief Minister Siddaramaiah still wants to go ahead with the plan to divide the BBMP after such a verdict. He said it was the aspiration of people to see that Bengaluru city remained united.
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The former Deputy Chief Minister R. Ashok, who spearheaded the BJP preparations for the BBMP elections, declared that the party would seriously resist any move to split the BBMP.
Another prominent leader, who wished anonymity, told The Hindu that the proposed division of the BBMP was unlikely to come through in the near future as the Bill adopted in the legislature recently had to go through several procedures. Pointing out that the Bill had to go through Union Ministries of Home, Law, and Urban Development, he said it would take a long time to get clearances from these Ministries.
Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Jagadish Shettar on Tuesday remarked it was time Mr. Siddaramaiah resigned from the Chief Minister’s post in the wake of the Congress losing the BBMP elections. He said the mandate of people was against “arrogance and maladministration of the Chief Minister”.
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The former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, while making it clear that he was not demanding Mr. Siddaramaiah’s resignation, wanted the Chief Minister to change his attitude and working style from now.