Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday took a dig at the BJP for opposing the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) council's proposal to name a stretch of road in the city after him.
According to official sources, the proposal calls for naming a stretch of KRS Road from the Lakshmi Venkataramanaswamy temple to the Outer Ring Road junction as 'Siddaramaiah Arogya Marga'.
"Will the BJP welcome it? Opposing things is their duty. They oppose good and also bad things. They don't know anything," Siddaramaiah told reporters here in response to a question.
"Ex-MP (of Mysuru Prathap Simha) is from which party? What has he said? ...others say things, what to do?" he said, citing BJP leader Simha's support for the proposal to name the road after him.
Based on a suggestion by Chamaraja Congress MLA Harish Gowda, the MCC took the decision at its meeting on November 22. The matter was first placed before the Mysuru deputy commissioner prior to being tabled in the council meeting.
The MCC then issued a newspaper notice inviting views from the public on the proposal within 30 days on December 13, the sources said.
Mysuru is the home district of Siddaramaiah, who is serving his second term as the chief minister.
BJP state president B Y Vijayendra hit out at the CM Siddaramaiah over the MCC's move.
"Mysuru was built and developed by the Rajas and Maharajas of Mysuru. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is going to name the road that was named after such a great royal family after himself. How valid and appropriate is this decision taken by the Mysuru City Corporation, which currently has no public representatives?"
"Doesn't it offend the morality of the Chief Minister who is in power and is trying to name the road after himself? Such a move can only be seen among those who follow the Tughlaq regime," he posted on 'X'.
However, former BJP Mysuru Simha has said there was nothing wrong in naming the road after Siddaramaiah as he is the "Son of Mysuru".
"We may be in ideologically different parties. I oppose him (CM) even today ideologically...but he is the son of Mysuru. He is a two-time Chief Minister of the state with full majority. He is a popular CM and politician. He has made a contribution for Mysuru..." he said.
The JD(S) on its part has said that the decision of the MCC to name the KRS Road in the historic city of Mysuru as Siddaramaiah Arogya Marga is "condemnable".
Pointing out that Siddaramaiah is an accused in the MUDA site allotment case and is facing probe by the Lokayukta police, the party has said, "There is no elected body in the Mysuru City Corporation. The officials appointed by the Karnataka Congress government have decided to name the road after Siddaramaiah as they are indebted to him."
RTI activist Snehamayi Krishna, on whose complaint a case was registered in the MUDA site allotment scam, has said that the road for which Siddaramaiah's name is proposed is a "historic" one, as Maharaja Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar had donated a vast swathe of land and established Tuberculosis Hospital there in memory of his sister Princess Krishnajammanni and her children who succumbed to TB.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, he said, "According to me, the officials have decided to name such a road after CM Siddaramaiah, who is an accused in the MUDA case, despite them not having any powers to do so. Several citizens have expressed their objections to it. I'm also fighting against it legally. If the proposal is not dropped by accepting the objections that have been filed, we will challenge it in the High Court and seek action against officials."
Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.
