SC to consider hearing plea related to polls for Bengaluru civic body
New Delhi, Nov 9: The Supreme Court Tuesday agreed to consider listing a plea of the Karnataka government against the high court verdict asking the State Election Commission (SEC) to hold elections to 198 wards of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike' (BBMP).
A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli was informed that the 5-year term of the civic body expired in September last year and there was an urgency as the poll process had been stayed.
Send the file in my chamber. We will see at 1.00 pm, the CJI said when advocate Nizam Pasha said that a bench headed by the then CJI S A Bobde (since retired) had stayed the high court verdict of December 4, 2020 asking the SEC to hold the election within six weeks.
The state government had moved the top court challenging the high court order which directed the BBMP polls as per delimitation notification of September 23, 2020, instead of the 243 seats as mentioned in the Karnataka Municipal Corporation Third Amendment Act (2020).
The government said the high court judgment nullified the unanimous will of the state legislature, made up of the representatives of the people and had amended the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act of 1976 to increase the number of wards in Bengaluru to 243.
The state government said the high court had handicapped efforts to improve urban governance in one of the largest and most cosmopolitan cities in India .
The increase in number of wards was necessitated by the fact that the population and demographics of the city have undergone vast changes since 2009 when the number of wards was increased to 198, the plea said.
After the 5-year tenure of the incumbent BBMP Council had expired in September last year, the state government appointed a senior IAS officer as administrator of the civic body.
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Surjewala slams Pratap Simha’s ‘vile’ remarks on CM Siddaramaiah, demands apology from BJP
Bengaluru (PTI): Congress general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala on Saturday launched a sharp attack on the BJP over alleged disparaging remarks made by former Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah during an assembly bypoll campaign in Bagalkote.
Simha made the remarks while campaigning for BJP candidate Veerabhadrayya Charantimath, triggering a political row ahead of the by-elections scheduled for April 9.
Congress has fielded Umesh Meti, son of former MLA late M Y Meti, whose death necessitated the bye-election.
"Pratap Simha's vile remarks about Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in Bagalkot have exposed the BJP's despicable politics once again," Surjewala said in a social media post.
Alleging a larger political design, he added, "It is increasingly evident that Pratap Simha’s outburst is driven by desperation," and accused the BJP of using such remarks to target backward classes, Scheduled Castes, and minorities.
The Rajya Sabha member further claimed that the incident reflects a pattern within the party. "This is not one man's madness—it is the BJP’s political culture," he said, adding that the remarks were aimed at "denigrating leaders from marginalised communities".
Referring to past incidents, Surjewala said, "CM Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar have received death threats in the past, including one from BJP leaders who warned that their bodies would be stuffed into a refrigerator."
The Congress leader also criticised the BJP’s bypoll campaign strategy, alleging "internal contradictions".
He pointed to the party’s use of expelled MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal in campaigning despite earlier disciplinary action against him, accusing the BJP of resorting to "abuses and indignities" against opposition leaders.
Surjewala demanded immediate action from the BJP leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP national president Nitin Nabin, state president B Y Vijayendra, and Leader of Opposition R Ashoka.
He said they must tender a public apology to Kannadigas, particularly to OBCs, SCs, and minorities, over the remarks, and urged the party to expel Simha if it does not repudiate his statements.
Surjewala also called for legal action, demanding that an FIR be registered against Simha and that strict measures be taken.
Warning of "political consequences", he said the electorate in the bypoll-bound constituencies would respond decisively if the BJP failed to apologise, asserting that voters would "teach the BJP a befitting lesson" in the elections.
There has been no immediate reaction from the saffron party yet.
