BENGALURU: With the Supreme Court recently granting eight weeks time (till August 28) to conduct BBMP elections, the State Government has speeded up road and other infrastructure works in order to lure voters.
Earlier, the poll to the BBMP was supposed to be held on July 28 and code of conduct was in force from June 25, prohibiting any political parties from taking up any development projects. This had prevented the legislators from executing any work in their constituencies.
However, after the Supreme Court granted extension, State Election Commission (SEC) withdrew its notification on code of conduct and legislators across the city are busy carrying out activities such as concreting and providing black topping to the roads, said sources.
Byrati Basavaraj, who represents K.R. Puram constituency, has taken up concreting of roads at Tambuchetty Playa and asphalting roads at Kalkere, Horamavu and Ramamurthy Nagar areas, sources said.
The extension has also come a blessing for the legislators to get various visible infrastructure works approved from the civic bodies. Similar activities are visible at constituencies, represented mostly by Congress legislators, added sources.
Meanwhile, Rajya Sabha member Rajeev Chandrasekhar has filed a recall petition in the Supreme Court and said that he would move it for hearing if government initiates any move to trifurcate the city ahead of BBMP polls. He also urged the SEC to notify fresh dates of election.
“I am surprised to see the continued attempt of the Government of Karnataka and some Ministers to delay the BBMP Election process and initiate moves for trifurcation of the Palike despite Government of Karnataka’s undertakings to the Supreme Court (SC) on this issue and despite the SC granting eight weeks’ time only for the purposes of conducting and completing the BBMP election process, he said.
Mr Chandrasekhar urged the that there should not be any interruption in the model code of conduct, which is already in effect till the completion of the election process
The Supreme Court order on July 03, as well Karnataka High Court Justice Nagaratna’s order dated March 30, is unambiguous in stating that elections to BBMP cannot be postponed on account of any proposed trifurcation.
It’s unfortunate that the state government has not given categorical assurance about conducting the BBMP elections as mandated by the SC and the statements made by some ministers appear to be an attempt to induce ambiguity and scuttle the electoral process giving rise to doubts about the intention of the government to hold the elections on time, he opined.
