Gautam Adani meets Karnataka CM D K Shivakumar

Industrialist Gautam Adani met Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar in Bengaluru for about an hour in what sources described as a courtesy visit. The meeting came amid the proposed Hebbal-Silk Board tunnel road project, drawing criticism from the BJP

Bengaluru: Top industrialist Gautam Adani on Sunday met Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar here and held discussions for about an hour, with sources close to the CM describing the meeting as a “courtesy visit”.

The BJP’s state unit lashed out at the ruling Congress over its “double standard” vis-a-vis the industrialist, who is the Chairman of the Adani Group.

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Adani had visited the Art of Living and met Shivakumar at the CM’s residence in Sadashivanagar while returning to the airport, the sources said. The Chief Minister’s Office also maintained that it was a courtesy meeting.

The meeting comes amid the proposed tunnel road project from Hebbal to Silk Board, for which Adani Enterprises has emerged as the lowest bidder, sources said. The tender, however, has not yet been officially finalised.

It could not be immediately ascertained whether the tunnel project figured in the discussion between Shivakumar and Adani or whether the meeting was limited to exchanging pleasantries.

Meanwhile, senior BJP leader R Ashoka criticised the meeting and questioned whether Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had given permission for Shivakumar to meet Adani.

“Congress opposes Adani in Delhi while in Karnataka it is in his favour. Isn’t this a double standard,” Ashoka, Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly, said.

He said the Karnataka government had “laid out a red carpet” for Adani.

Ashoka urged Shivakumar to tell Rahul Gandhi that Adani was a businessman and was only doing business.

Ashoka also took a swipe at Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, over his environmental activism, asking him to come to Bengaluru and hug a tree at Lalbagh or Sankey Tank, which will be affected by the proposed Tunnel Road.

The BJP has been opposing Tunnel Road, especially party MP Tejasvi Surya, who has even approached the Karnataka High Court on this issue.