Bengaluru, Mar 17 (PTI) A citizen group, The Bengaluru Town Hall, met Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Monday and submitted a memorandum urging him not to give assent to the Greater Bengaluru Governance Bill 2024, which was recently passed in the Legislative Assembly.
The bill proposes restructuring the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) by splitting it into a maximum of seven city corporations in the Greater Bengaluru Area.
It also provides for the constitution of a Greater Bengaluru Authority for coordination and supervision and extends the terms of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor to 30 months.
In the memorandum, the group alleged that the bill violates the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA), disempowers the State Election Commission, leads to unbalanced development in Bengaluru, usurps the role of the Metropolitan Planning Committee, and shifts power from corporators to MLAs, MLCs, and MPs.
"The Greater Bengaluru Governance Bill (GBGB), which has been passed in both houses of the legislature recently, contains many undemocratic and unconstitutional provisions. We fervently request you not to give assent to this bill," the memorandum stated.
The group also urged the Governor to consider its request in light of certain infrastructure projects recently announced by the Karnataka government, including the proposed Tunnel Road, Sky-Deck, and Expressway projects in Bengaluru.
According to them, a memorandum expressing deep concerns over these projects was sent via email to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on January 10, 2025, by the Alliance for Sustainable Urban Priorities, a group of concerned citizens.
The memorandum was based on expert opinions and included a detailed study report by Prof Ashish Verma of the Indian Institute of Science.
"But the Karnataka government has neither responded to it nor taken any steps to reconsider these projects, which are likely to have severe environmental impacts and incur heavy costs without significant benefits," the group alleged.
They further urged the Governor to constitute an expert committee to formulate a common comprehensive act for all urban local self-governments in Karnataka.
It is, therefore, necessary to establish an expert committee to uphold equality before the law by reviewing the provisions of the Karnataka Municipalities (KM) Act, Karnataka Municipal Corporations (KMC) Act, and GBGB, the memorandum stated.
"The aim should be to formulate a unified and comprehensive act for all urban local self-governments in Karnataka, with special provisions for larger cities where required," it added.