BJP-led Karnataka govt will fall on its own after Dec 5 bypolls: Veerappa Moily
New Delhi: The BJP government in Karnataka, surviving with a "wafer-thin majority", will fall after the December 5 bypolls to 15 Assembly segments, senior Congress leader M Veerappa Moily said here on Thursday.
In an interview to PTI, Moily said, "The people of Karnataka are fed up with the misrule, maladministration and inefficiency of (Chief Minister BS) Yediyurappa and after the December 5 bypolls, this government, surviving with a wafer-thin majority, will fall on its own."
In the 224-member Karnataka Assembly, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has 105 MLAs and is supported by one Independent legislator.
The opposition has 101 members -- Congress 66, Janata Dal (Secular) 34 and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) one. There are 17 vacancies, of which 15 seats are going to polls.
The election in the Maski and Rajarajeshwari Nagar segments has been deferred in view of petitions pending in the Karnataka High Court relating to the 2018 state Assembly polls.
Moily, a former Karnataka chief minister, said "as per the ground reports" he received, the Congress could win in 13 of the 15 seats in the bypolls, enough to "unseat Yediyurappa".
The Congress leader added that the time had come for Yediyurappa to vacate the chief minister's chair as "in the history of the state", he had not seen an inefficient CM like him.
"He was not even able to prevail upon the Centre to release adequate funds for undertaking flood relief works as Karnataka witnessed two spells of heavy rains, affecting a vast number of people and their properties," Moily said.
While the state government had sought around Rs 38,000 crore, the BJP regime at the Centre released only Rs 1,200 crore as interim relief.
"This is Yediyurappa's ability to convince the Centre and get funds. The relief works have come to a standstill in various districts due to a paucity of funds, further inconveniencing the people," Moily said.
In the floods following an intensive south-west monsoon, 91 people were killed and seven lakh displaced as their dwellings were either washed out or damaged. A total of 103 talukas in 22 districts were affected in the southern state.
Asked about JD(S) chief H D Deve Gowda's recent statement that his party will no longer have a tie-up with the Congress, Moily said he would not attach much significance to such statements.
"Deve Gowda has been saying this since the May 2018 Assembly polls," the former Union minister said.
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Adani Group emerges lowest bidder for Bengaluru’s 16.75-km tunnel road project
Bengaluru: The Adani Group has become the lowest bidder for both packages of the proposed 16.75-km tunnel road project in Bengaluru, according to sources familiar with the bids opened by Bengaluru Smart Infrastructure Ltd (B-SMILE).
According to a report published by Deccan Herald on Monday, the government estimated the entire project to cost Rs 17,698 crore, while the Adani Group has quoted Rs 22,267 crore. The ports-to-power conglomerate’s bid is about 24% higher for the first package and 28% higher for the second than the government’s estimates, a gap that could prompt authorities to seek the state Cabinet’s approval on the tenders’ fate.
M Maheshwar Rao, Chief Commissioner of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA), who is also the Managing Director of B-SMILE, declined to comment.
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In all, four infrastructure companies had participated in the tenders for the project, which has been proposed under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model, with 40% funding from the government and the remaining investment to be raised by the private concessionaire.
During the technical evaluation, the Adani Group and the Hyderabad-based Vishwa Samudra Engineering Ltd qualified for the financial round.
According to the report, Dilip Buildcon was disqualified due to a clause that bars firms linked to collapsed bridges or tunnels, while Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL) was rejected because its joint venture (JV) partner did not meet technical requirements.
With only two companies left in the fray, the Adani Group emerged as the lowest bidder, ahead of Vishwa Samudra.
The tunnel project officially named the North–South underground corridor, is part of the Congress government’s ambitious to ease Bengaluru’s traffic congestion by building two major underground roads (totalling 40 km) along with 13 flyovers and elevated corridors.
The project is the brainchild of Deputy CM D K Shivakumar, who is also the Bengaluru development minister.
The proposal, however, has faced criticism and political opposition, especially from senior BJP leaders, who object to the alignment that requires acquiring six acres of Lalbagh Botanical Garden, a historic green space.
As per the report, Urban mobility experts have also warned that the tunnel corridor may clash with the alignment of Namma Metro’s Phase 3A, possibly affecting the metro expansion.
