On Wednesday, the Opposition BJP launched a striking symbolic protest across several areas of Bengaluru. Their aim was to highlight the deplorable state of the city’s roads and pressure the government into allocating a substantial ₹10,000 crore for a complete asphalting initiative.
Leading the charge in the Basavanagudi area, Leader of the Opposition R. Ashok emphasized that simply patching up potholes was insufficient. He insisted on a comprehensive asphalting project to make Bengaluru’s roads truly motorable again. Ashok specifically demanded a one-time grant of ₹10,000 crore for this massive undertaking, starkly warning that a failure to do so would lead to the conclusion that the government was facing severe financial distress.
Ashok also took aim at Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who had previously blamed the former BJP government for the poor road infrastructure. Ashok criticized Shivakumar for being “insensitive” to public grievances, stating firmly that the current administration should cease attributing existing problems to the previous BJP rule, especially since the Congress party has been in power for over two and a half years.
In a call for citizen action, Mr. Ashok urged the general public to join the symbolic protest by filling potholes in their respective localities themselves.