BENGALURU: Consensus eluded the Select Committee of the Legislative Council, looking into the proposed amendment to the Karnataka Municipal Corporations (Amendment) Act 2015 to split the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), at its last meeting on Thursday.
With the deadline of three months to submit its report drawing nearer, the committee is expected to submit its report to the Chairman of the House on Friday or Monday next. The meeting ended abruptly after the Opposition BJP and the JD(S) members stuck to their stand on the issue.
One of the members of the committee told Express that the Opposition, which vehemently opposed the idea of dividing BBMP, insisted on recording its dissent in the report.
IT and BT Minister S R Patil, who is also chairman of the committee, had tried in vain to convince the Opposition members, who are in majority in the committee. However, the Opposition insisted on retaining the present structure of BBMP.
Senior Congress member R V Venkatesh, one of the panel members, said that the draft report had been finalised. After the report is tabled, amendment to the KMC Act would be taken up for voting, sources said.
It may be recalled that Council Chairman D H Shankaramurthy had referred the Bill to the Select Committee when it was taken up for voting during the last session.
This had thwarted the state government’s plan, at least temporarily, to divide BBMP and hold fresh elections to the new bodies.
An expert committee, comprising former chief secretary B S Patil, had submitted its final report to CM Siddaramaiah recently.