Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], September 24 : Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA K Gopalaiah and party workers staged a protest on Wednesday in front of Kanteerava Studios in Bengaluru against the Congress government over the potholes in the city.
BJP leader NL Narendra Babu slammed Congress and called Bengaluru a "pothole city".
He told ANI, "Bengaluru was once called a retired man's paradise, IT City and BT City. Today, it has become 'pothole city'. Who is responsible for this?"
Narendra Babu added that government officials are not filling up the potholes, despite directions from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar.
"The present Government, where recently the CM said potholes should be filled up within one month. What were they doing all these days? Even the Deputy CM has warned the officers, but what is happening? The officers are not coming to the streets. Roads and footpaths of Bengaluru are not in order. We have come to the street to protest and fill up the potholes," he said.
Meanwhile, DK Shivakumar blamed the previous BJP government in the State for the potholes on roads.
"The BJP will never be happy. All these potholes have come under the BJP regime. They are responsible for the bad administration of the roads in Karnataka," Shivakumar told reporters in Patna.
This comes amid mounting criticism from opposition parties and members of civil society for the alleged lack of road maintenance in Bengaluru, resulting in potholes.
According to a press release, Shivakumar stated, "The Chief Minister has given officials a deadline to fix all roads in Bengaluru by October 31. He has also promised an additional Rs 750 crore grant for closing potholes."
A high-level meeting was held at the CM's residence, Cauveri, on Saturday on the improvement of Bengaluru roads and a smooth traffic system, DK Shivakumar, who is also the Minister for Urban Development, Bengaluru, informed.
"The Chief Minister and I have held a meeting of GBA officials regarding the pothole problem in Bengaluru. With the cooperation of our officials, police and the public, we have identified 10,000 potholes in the city. I have warned the officials that strict action will be taken if these are not repaired," he said.