Bengaluru Navanirmana Party (BNP) Monday announced that it was ready to contest all 198 wards of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). The BNP announcement follows a May 10 order of the Supreme Court directing all states and Union territories to notify within two weeks elections for local bodies where polls are due. The BNP stated it has no political ambitions beyond Bengaluru, and all its probable candidates are regular citizens, many of whom are active in their resident welfare associations (RWAs) and other citizen-led movements concerning the city. Lalithamba BV, BNP head of campaigns, said: “Even before winning the ward elections, the party has implemented a host of initiatives to help make the city better. Through its BNP Namma Samiti campaign, BNP leaders and volunteers have been taking up local civic issues in Ward Committee Meetings and resolving them. The BNP Citizen Portal available on the website www.nammabnp.org provides complete details of all BBMP projects (63,000+ projects worth Rs 21,000+ crore) approved and executed over the last five years. Under the BNP Nimma Arogya campaign, thousands of under-privileged citizens have been provided preventive and primary healthcare. The party is now aiming to take this affordable health scheme to the doorsteps of lakhs of needy citizens in Bengaluru.” Rishi Raghavan, BNP youth wing head, said: “The BNP has also been taking up important issues relating to Bengaluru. The primary example being the reversal of unjust property tax notices served to over 78,000 honest tax-paying citizens. Through a sustained campaign of engagement with the government, on-the-ground and virtual protests, citizen awareness building and media pressure, the BNP managed to force the government to reverse unfair penalties and usurious interest charged on citizens for no fault of theirs.” Srikanth Narasimhan, founder and general secretary of the BNP, said: “What I am most particularly happy and proud about is that the BNP is made up of a diverse set of individuals, including committed civic activists, professionals from various fields, entrepreneurs, home-makers, and students, all united by their common love for Bengaluru and their desire to help rebuild the city and revive its former glory. These are competent professionals who have come into the political arena while working diligently on issues that have plagued the city.” Notably, the term of the last BBMP Council expired in September 2020.
