Mysuru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that neither the BBMP polls nor the recently held gram panchayath polls could be considered as a referendum. He was speaking to reporters at Mysuru airport on his arrival to participate in the series of programmes organised in connection with late CM D Devraj Urs’ birth anniversary.
He expressed confidence in the Congress securing a clear majority in the upcoming elections to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).He also claimed that the Congress had won a majority of the seats in the gram panchayat polls held in May-June this year.
He expressed confidence in the Congress enjoying the support of the backward classes, minorities and Dalits. “The people are aware that communal forces will come to power if the Congress is not favoured by them during the polls”, he said. He ruled out the possibility of a split in the party’s vote bank after candidates from parties like Socialist Democratic Party of India and Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen entered the fray.
“BJP, which had been controlled the BBMP during the last five years, has made no contribution to the city’s development.” He accused the BJP of converting Bengaluru from a “garden city into a garbage city” besides pledging the properties of the civic body to banks to raise loans. “The party, which is in power at the Centre, deleted Bengaluru from the list of cities selected to be developed as smart cities,” he said.
