Mere rumours, not nominating 650 people to Greater Bengaluru Authority: UDD
BENGALURU: The Urban Development Department (UDD) has clarified that allegations of nominating 650 people to Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) are baseless. The clarification comes in the backdrop of the government bringing in amendments to the Greater Bengaluru Administration (Second Amendment) Bill, 2025, that intends to bring changes to the Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024. The UDD said in the clarification that the amendment has been misunderstood, and there is no intention to delay elections to the GBAs five corporations. As against the allegation of nominating 650 people to five corporations, UDD clarified that it is misleading people. Under the Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024, provision has been made to modify the territorial limits of Greater Bengaluru area from time to time. As per due process, local authorities can be included within Greater Bengaluru area. Until such newly included areas are re-delimited and elections conducted, those areas will not have any elected representatives. In such a situation, there would be no one to represent those areas in the city corporation concerned, which could adversely affect administration and development, UDD said in its clarification on Sunday. It said the amendment to Clause 30 provides for nomination of at least one member, a resident of the local area newly added to Greater Bengaluru area, for every 20,000 population, as an additional member to the city corporation concerned. Since such a nominated person is not an elected representative, they will not have voting rights in the city corporation and will continue only until elections are conducted for that local area, the department said. Similarly, when any part of a panchayat area is merged into a smaller urban area, the Karnataka Municipalities Act, 1964, under Section 360(D), provides for the government to nominate a person who is an ordinary resident as an additional councillor, until the Municipal Council is reconstituted, the clarification read. UDD said with the intention that a nominated person should not continue indefinitely as a member of the city corporation, an amendment to Clause 29 has also been proposed, specifying that re-delimitation for newly added local areas must be completed within three months. It said the government is committed to conducting ward elections for the newly constituted city corporations, and listed out timelines of notifications issued in connection with GBA and the election process. As re-delimitation of these 369 wards has already been carried out, there is no scope for appointing nominated members for these wards. Elections will be conducted in these wards and representatives chosen, the department said. GBA polls: `50k, `25k for Cong application fee Bengaluru: The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) will issue applications from Monday for those who want to contest the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) polls, said its president and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar. Shivakumar, who spoke to the media in New Delhi on Sunday, said the deposit has been fixed at Rs 50,000 for general category and Rs 25,000 for women and Scheduled Caste candidates. The amount collected along with these applications will be in the party fund. Although reservation has not yet been finalised, applications are being invited to understand who is interested in contesting from the 369 wards, Shivakumar said. ENS
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