Bengaluru’s municipal waste tender process has come under fresh political scrutiny after Karnataka Opposition Leader R. Ashoka alleged irregularities involving GST, premium pricing and the disclosure of information to the state Cabinet.
Ashoka shared a Prajavani report published on November 6 about renewed confusion in 14% GST-related tender calculations and accused the Congress government of allowing the city’s waste-management contracts to become mired in allegations of wrongdoing. His comments were directed at tenders handled through the Bengaluru Solid Waste Management Limited (BSWML).
According to the report shared by Ashoka, the Opposition leader alleged that the Cabinet was given incorrect information during the tender process. He also raised questions about whether the process had implications under the election Model Code of Conduct. The allegations, as reported, have not been independently established in the material available for this report.
Ashoka specifically questioned the treatment of GST and premium charges in tenders for the C.V. Raman Nagar and Bengaluru South areas. He asked Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar and Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda to explain why the rates in those tenders included the disputed calculations under the two heads.
The controversy centres on how the city contracts the collection and management of municipal solid waste. Such tenders determine how waste is lifted from neighbourhoods and transferred through the city’s operating system, making the transparency of pricing and eligibility relevant to both municipal finances and daily public services.
Ashoka demanded documentary replies to the allegations and called for the complete tender process to be made public. His comments followed the publication of the Prajavani special report titled ‘Waste: Confusion Returns in 14%’, which examined questions surrounding the tender calculations.
The allegations add to the administrative scrutiny facing BSWML’s contracting process. The material supplied for this report does not include a response from the Chief Minister, the Greater Bengaluru Development Minister, BSWML or the officials responsible for the tenders. It also does not provide the tender documents, the disputed rates, the Cabinet records or any findings from an inquiry.
The next step sought by the Opposition is the public release of the tender records and an official, document-backed response from the state government. Until those records and responses are made available, the claims about GST, premium pricing, Cabinet information and possible election-code violations remain allegations attributed to Ashoka.
