Congress opposes Adani in Delhi while in Karnataka it is in his favour: BJP

Bengaluru: Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani met Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar in Bengaluru yesterday in what the Chief Minister’s Office described as a courtesy meeting.

The meeting lasted around an hour and was held at Shivakumar’s residence in Sadashivanagar. According to sources, Adani had visited the Art of Living and met the Chief Minister while returning to the airport.

Speaking to reporters, Shivakumar said, it was Adani’s first visit to meet him since he became the Chief Minister.

“After I became the CM, this was the first time he (Adani) wanted to come and meet me here. They are carrying out several businesses here. He came to meet me out of courtesy,” Shivakumar said.

The meeting came amid the ongoing controversy over the proposed 17-km underground corridor connecting Hebbal in North Bengaluru with Silk Board in the South.

Adani Enterprises has emerged as the lowest bidder for the project, which is being planned by Bengaluru Smart Infrastructure Ltd. (B-SMILE) in two packages.

However, the tender has not yet been officially finalised. Adani’s bid was reportedly around Rs. 4,600 crore higher than the Government’s estimated project cost of around Rs. 17,698 crore.

The project is among Shivakumar’s infrastructure proposals aimed at decongesting one of Bengaluru’s busiest routes.

The State Government has proposed executing the project under a public-private partnership model, with the Government contributing 40 percent of the estimated project cost and the successful bidder funding the remaining amount.

BJP attacks Cong. over Adani meeting

The meeting drew criticism from the BJP, which has been opposing the underground corridor project. BJP MP Tejasvi Surya has also approached the Karnataka High Court against the project.

Citizen groups have raised concerns over the project’s utility and financial viability, particularly the possible toll burden on motorists.

Karnataka Assembly Leader of Opposition R. Ashok accused the Congress of adopting different approaches towards Adani in Karnataka and at the national level.

“Congress opposes Adani in Delhi while in Karnataka, it is in his favour. Isn’t this a double standard?” Ashok said.

He alleged that the Karnataka Government had “laid out a red carpet” for Adani and questioned whether Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had permitted Shivakumar to meet the industrialist.