The video of a man wading through chest deep water at the flooded Nayandahalli junction on May 17 night, mockingly thanking Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai for a ‘new swimming pool’ has gone viral. In the video, he asks Mr. Bommai to join him in swimming at the flooded junction.
This video, perhaps, best captured people’s anger at the Karnataka Government over the rain-induced havoc in Bengaluru on May 17-18. In the absence of an elected council in the civic body, the State Government, particularly the seven ministers from the city and the Chief Minister who holds charge of the city, drew a lot of flak from the people not only for the way the city was flooded after Tuesday’s rains, but also at what many termed ‘apathy’.
What riled most was that in many place, civic officials did not turn up in the night to help them, but came only on Wednesday morning. Speaking to mediapersons, many expressed anger at the Karnataka Government and Ministers who had not come to help them. This prompted many Ministers, including the Chief Minister, to step outside their homes and visit rain-affected areas in Bengaluru.
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai visited rain-affected areas in Hosakerehalli, Padmanabha Nagar and Ideal Homes Layout at R.R. Nagar with Ministers and local MLAs R. Ashoka and Munirathna, while returning from a scheduled event — inauguration of a temple festival in Padmanabha Nagar. However, the stopovers were brief, and he drew flak for that too.
K. R. Puram MLA Byrathi Basavaraj visited Sai Layout in Horamavu, which received the highest rainfall of 153.5 mm on May 17 night. He encountered angry residents, who were upset that no civic official had turned up till then.
“I agree that civic officials did not come last night. But they have been working from Wednesday early morning. I have also come now,” he said in a bid to pacify them.
Mahalakshmi Layout MLA K. Gopalaiah issued a statement saying that over 800 houses were flooded in his constituency. He requested the Chief Minister to provide compensation to the affected families. Later, he took credit for the Chief Minister’s announcement of ₹25,000 compensation for families whose homes were flooded.
D. S. Rajashekhar, a civic activist from Bengaluru Praja Vedike, said in the absence of elected councillors, residents of the city were effectively orphaned. “The MLAs have taken over the city and are milking it for the resources it offers, but don’t seem to care for its residents. A councillor is the most accessible representative. At least, we could go and cry to him/her. Now, even that solace is not available,” he said.
