KBG takes B’luru portfolio battle to Delhi

Bengaluru: Battle for Bengaluru shifts to Delhi. Senior minister Krishna Byre Gowda, who has sought clarity over pared Bengaluru development portfolio, has decided to meet party bosses seeking full bouquet of Bengaluru civic administration before taking charge of the high-profile department.Currently, Bengaluru planning agencies are with chief minister DK Shivakumar. This means having two power centres; or, the CM will have final say on critical civic infrastructure projects.KBG's Delhi trip comes as a serious concern to the CM, who is busy dousing discontentment among ministers about their portfolios. The minister reached Delhi on Tuesday morning, a day ahead of the CM's arrival. The minister is expected to meet KC Venugopal, among other leaders, to push his case.While CMO officials suggest that AICC president Malllikarjun Kharge has said portfolio allocation is the CM's prerogative, sources close to KBG believe it is an eyewash.Aides of the minister explained the administrative hurdles in a split power structure, if allowed to exist. "For instance, if major issues arise along Outer Ring Road which is under Bangalore Development Authority, who is accountable to the Bengaluru development minister? Similarly, dozens of lakes in Bengaluru are managed by BDA. If flooding occurs during monsoon due to poor maintenance or encroachments, whom can the minister hold responsible? Same goes for all projects taken up by BDA," a source said.Followers of Byregowda have launched online campaigns seeking complete control of Bengaluru development for the minister.On Wednesday, Shivakumar is scheduled to visit multiple Congress offices in Delhi and have a dinner meeting with senior IAS officers at Karnataka Bhavan. The dinner is organised by about 40 Karnataka-cadre bureaucrats on central deputation.On Thursday morning, Shivakumar is expected to attend the 11th governing council meeting of Niti Aayog. This will be the first meeting attended by a Cong CM in this govt as Siddaramaiah stayed away in 2023, 2024 and 2025.Along with KBG, several other legislators, including TB Jayachandra and Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad, are also camping in Delhi, eyeing cabinet berth in the expansion expected later this month.