Manjunath Prasad to go? Gaurav Gupta's name doing rounds for BBMP chief

Bengaluru: Speculation is rife that BBMP Commissioner Manjunath Prasad will be transferred soon and he is likely to be succeeded by senior IAS officer Gaurav Gupta, who is now the commissioner, Industries and Commerce.

Mr Prasad took charge from Mr Kumar Naik on April 25 last year. It was then said Mr Naik was shunted out as he had differences with Bengaluru Development Minister K.J. George over crackdown on hotels that had not paid the property tax.

But this time, there is no provocation to transfer Mr Prasad. Will this sudden move affect presenting of the BBMP budget is the question haunting Bengalureans. The BBMP is expected to present the budget a week or ten days after the state government’s budget. The BBMP commissioner plays a crucial role in preparing the draft budget by holding meetings with Heads of the departments.

When Deccan Chronicle contacted them, both Mr Prasad and Mr Gupta denied any such move. Mr Prasad said that he did not that he was being transferred as he had not received any orders. “Although getting things done in the BBMP is tough, being a Bengalurean, I would like to get things delivered for my city,” he said.

Mr Prasad is said to enjoy the support of Mr Mallikarjun Kharge, leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha. Also, he has been handling issues like the anti-encroachment drive, cracking down on commercial establishments in residential areas and collecting the property taxes from defaulters.

Mr Gupta said that the rumour on his transfer has been doing the rounds for a long time, but he has not got any confirmation.