The BBMP office.
Credit: DH Photo
Bengaluru: A 14-member house panel of MLAs and MLCs met for the second time on Monday to discuss the relevance of establishing a new apex body called the Greater Bengaluru Authority, which is akin to the Greater London Authority.
At the meeting, members shared views about the need to restructure the BBMP, a sticky subject as three political parties have been divided.
Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad chaired the meeting, briefing the members about the draft version of the Greater Bengaluru Governance Bill.
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who was scheduled to attend the house panel, postponed his plan.
Besides setting up the Greater Bengaluru Authority, the bill proposes 1 to 10 smaller corporations in place of the BBMP and up to 400 wards.
The house panel, comprising MLAs ST Somashekar, S Suresh Kumar, SR Vishwanath, S Raghu and GT Devegowda, is expected to submit the report in three months. It will be tabled in the winter session of the legislature.
Citizen groups, including Citizens Action Forum (CAF), CIVIC Bangalore and Janaagraha, have opposed the draft Bill publicly, stating that it contradicts the provisions of the 74th Amendment, which gives constitutional status for urban local bodies. They also suspect the Bill has been tabled to delay the BBMP elections.