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Bengaluru: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has won the Bengaluru municipal corporation election for a third term, on Wednesday warned it will move court if a state government bill to trifurcate the corporation becomes law. The bill, passed by the Congress-led state government earlier this year amid protests from BJP members, is currently awaiting president’s assent.
The BJP won 100 out of the total 198 seats in the election to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) held on Tuesday.
A three-member committee appointed by the government in last September said Bengaluru had grown too large to be governed by a single corporation. It noted that Bengaluru, one of the fastest growing cities in the world that registered a population growth of 44.6% in the last decade, is plagued by poor infrastructure and urban services.
Splitting the BBMP into multiple city corporations was among several recommendations from the three-member panel, headed by former chief secretary B.S. Patil. Former BBMP commissioner Siddaiah and former Bangalore Agenda Task Force member V. Ravichandar were the other members of the panel, which submitted its report in July.
The state legislative assembly and council passed the The Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act (Amendment) Bill on 21 and 22 July respectively.
“If the President gives approval to the bill and Congress moves ahead with their restructuring plan, the BBMP will have to be reconstituted into two or three separate councils. That means the election will become null and void. We cannot accept that,” said BJP spokesperson S. Prakash.
“If the Congress government moves ahead with that plan, we will initiate legal procedures to block it,” he added.
Though chief minister Siddaramaiah has repeatedly asserted the party’s commitment to implement the recommendations of the report, his colleagues are having second thoughts.
“Holding another election would not be the right thing to do for the party now, which will be necessary for reforming Bengaluru as per the panel report,” said party spokesperson and minister for food and civil supplies minister Dinesh Gundurao.
Political analysts suggest the Congress would not be keen on the trifurcation after the election defeat, to avoid further political backlash.
Sandeep Shastri, political analyst and pro-vice chancellor of Bengaluru’s Jain University said if the BBMP is prematurely dissolved and trifurcated, it might displease voters and create a backlash for the Congress. It will also create a huge sympathy wave for the BJP which the Congress would not want to trigger, especially since elections to 11 legislative seats and zilla panchayats are slated within the next six months.
“In my view, the city needs it (restructuring). Whether it happens or not is a political call,” said V. Ravichandar, a member of the expert panel.
“The BBMP election is not a referendum on restructuring. The multi-corporation bill awaiting Presidential assent predates this election,” he said.
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