Kiran Shaw vs Karnataka: Bengaluru post raises Union govt question from minister

Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar Shaw’s viral takedown of the civil chaos in Bengaluru has sparked a political backlash with the Karnataka state minister now wondering why she did not criticize the Union government as well.

In a post on website

“What I am seeking is to remove garbage and resurface roads – which BBMP should do. Government ministers should hold them accountable. If garbage mafia is not doing its job, we need serious reform,” she wrote on Wednesday.

She was reacting to the state’s response. Karnataka Labor Minister Santosh Lad said: “Kiran Mazumdar posted a show against the pothole issue in Bengaluru and we will work to resolve it.” “But will you spread a message against the Union government also on issues like GST?”

Deputy CM DK Shivakumar echoed a softer line, calling for “collective effort, not constant criticism”. “It’s a collective effort with a mentality of urgency and quality. Let’s show everyone how we can fix the city,” Shaw replied.

IT Minister Priyank Karg downplayed the criticism, suggesting that the visitor may have only seen certain areas in Bengaluru. Industry Minister MP Patel described Shaw’s comments as “misplaced”, explaining that the city had paid back to her as much as she had contributed.

But many Internet users backtracked, accusing the ministers of deviation and missing the point. “Why are you so offended by the truth?” one user asked.

Opposition voices joined the battle. Aishwarya Ananth Kumar described the Congress-led state government as a “failure”, pointing to broken roads and streets filled with garbage.

Civic leader Revathi Ashok summed up the public mood: “When the government blames the garbage mafia, where does that leave us the citizens?”