BENGALURU: BTM Layout MLA Ramalinga Reddy, along with other Congress leaders staged a protest against the state government for cutting down the funds allocated to his constituency at Town Hall on Thursday. He was joined by Rajya Sabha MP B K Hari Prasad, Jayanagar MLA Soumya Reddy, MLA H M Revanna, BBMP corporators from the Congress and other party leaders. The protest went on for an hour-and-a-half.
They vented their ire against the BJP-led state government for not doing anything to develop the city. “The CM has money to travel to Delhi repeatedly. The PM has money to travel to other countries. That money should have been used to develop Bengaluru. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is from Karnataka, but she has done nothing to improve the city or the state,” said Ramalinga Reddy.
Soumya accused the CM of playing politics when it comes to the city’s development. She said that the CM went on rounds of the city in August and as per protocol, the area’s MLAs should be involved. “However,
Congress leaders were unaware. I got to know of it through social media,” she said.
“We do not want white topping roads, just roads. We want funds to repair roads and to make them motorable,” Ramalinga Reddy said on the sidelines of the protest.
He said that CM Yediyurappa had alleged corruption in white topping of roads but he forgot that it was the BJP government which had announced the initiative first.
“I have also been Bengaluru’s district in-charge minister and funds were allocated without any bias. However, the CM is taking away money from Congress held wards and constituencies and is giving it to the BJP held areas,” he added.
He said that he had held a meeting with other city Congress leaders who were facing similar issues. “A protest will be held at Vidhana Soudha soon,” he said.