I fear none, braved PM Modi, Amit Shah when jailed: Deputy CM Shivakumar

Bengaluru, Dec 13 (PTI) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday asserted that he feared none as he had braved Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah even in the face of imprisonment.

Shivakumar said he always wanted to help the apartment owners in the city to solve their problems, but warning him with a voting bloc will not work on him.

"I think some people don't know who I am. I returned from jail without getting scared by the Prime Minister and Home Minister of this country. Will I be afraid of someone called Hebbar?" Shivakumar said during an interaction with the representatives of Bengaluru Apartment Associations.

The event was organised at the Banquet Hall of Vidhana Soudha regarding the Karnataka Apartment (Ownership and Management) Bill, 2025, which will be applicable across the five Bengaluru City Corporations under the Greater Bengaluru Authority.

Shivakumar's assertion was in response to the warning by Kiran Hebbar, an office bearer of the Apartment Owners Association.

The Deputy CM, who holds the Bengaluru Development portfolio, read out the letter by Hebbar: "We, the Apartment Owners' Association waiting patiently for many years for the amendment to be passed. Waiting another two-and-a-half years for it is unacceptable. The Congress party had promised us. We represent a significant voting bloc, influence approximately 1.3 crore people of Bengaluru, of the 1.5 crore population." Hebbar further wrote: "We hope that our collective voice will be heard and acted upon. As a community, we have been neglected by the successive ruling parties, and we have nothing to lose by continuing to wait. However, we caution the ruling party to consider our request since the GBA election is round the corner." Shivakumar said one should have basic common sense while addressing. The Deputy CM said he was there to help people.

"But you can't warn this government, whoever he is. I, too, have basic common sense. Warning me and cautioning me? Whom are you doing this with? What's the obligation to invite you? We respect the human relationship, your efforts and its outcome. Gandhi had said If you want to control yourself, use your brain. If you want to control others, use your heart. I use my heart to control," Shivakumar said.

The Deputy CM said the Congress had not made any promise. Instead, the 18 BJP MLAs who were elected from Bengaluru made the promise.

Shivakumar said he was elected to the Assembly eight times and had defeated the Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka, with a victory margin of 1.23 lakh in the previous Assembly election.

"I won with a record margin because I loved people and people loved me. Your warnings won't work on me," the DCM said.

"I am telling you that you can't play a game with me as you do with others. We have more brain power than you, but we are still on the ground. That's why I called you because we want your voice to become our voice," he added.

He said he, too, has built thousands of apartments and given land for thousands of apartments.

"I am a resident of Bengaluru, and I own a lot of properties in Bengaluru. You should know how to behave with people," Shivakumar said. PTI GMS ADB