Bengaluru: Ten days after being sworn in, senior minister Krishna Byre Gowda Saturday indicated he will not assume charge of Bengaluru development portfolio until CM DK Shivakumar grants him full control over the city’s key planning agencies or an alternative portfolio.Gowda, who recently visited Delhi to seek the party high command’s intervention, is said to be unhappy that the CM retained direct control over Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and Bengaluru Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA). While Gowda has been assigned Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA), five city corporations, water board (BWSSB) and Namma Metro, he believes handling the city’s development without its primary planning arms will cripple his ability to deliver results.Returning from Delhi, Gowda insisted his stand is about accountability to the public, not hunger for power. “I would like to state clearly that I don’t have any disgruntlement. The CM and the party have given me the responsibility of looking after Bengaluru development. This is a difficult challenge. I don’t see it as a power because this is a big responsibility amid huge expectations from the people of Bengaluru, as well as from the CM and the party,” he added.He emphasised that he will not log into work without absolute functional clarity. “If not, I will not be able to work as per expectations and won’t be able to deliver results as expected. Because whenever I take up any responsibility, there is accountability in delivering results for the expectations placed by the people and the party,” Gowda added.
