The decision of the Karnataka State Election Commission to schedule elections for the five Municipal Corporations under the newly formed Greater Bengaluru Authority between June 14 and June 24 has sparked intense political discussions within the ruling Congress government.

The announcement has reportedly exposed differences between supporters of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar over the timing of the civic polls, especially at a politically sensitive moment for the party.

Political observers believe the early conduct of the Bengaluru civic elections could strengthen Siddaramaiah’s position within the Congress leadership at a time when speculation around a future leadership transition continues in Karnataka politics.

The situation became serious enough for Randeep Singh Surjewala, Congress general secretary in charge of Karnataka, to step in and reportedly explore legal options to seek a postponement of the elections.

Earlier, Karnataka Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh had informed the State Election Commission that conducting elections before June 30 would be difficult because government machinery was occupied with the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process linked to electoral verification.

Despite the communication from the state government, State Election Commissioner G. S. Sangreshi proceeded with announcing the poll schedule.

Officials said online verification under the SIR exercise had concluded earlier, but door-to-door verification and voter mapping activities are still continuing across Karnataka. The updated voter list is expected only by late May or mid-June, after which objections and corrections would normally be invited.

Because the revision process is incomplete, the civic elections are likely to be conducted using the older electoral rolls, a move that has reportedly become a point of political disagreement within the Congress.

According to political calculations inside the party, holding elections immediately could hurt Congress in Bengaluru, especially after the party’s weaker performance in the city during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. A poor result in the civic polls could also put pressure on DK Shivakumar, who oversees Bengaluru-related political and administrative matters.

Leaders aligned with Shivakumar are believed to favour delaying the elections until the revised voter list is finalised, arguing that updated rolls could remove duplicate or migrated voters and potentially improve Congress’s electoral prospects in at least some of the new corporations.

Sources indicated that Siddaramaiah was initially reluctant to challenge the Supreme Court’s direction to complete the elections before the end of June. However, after internal discussions, Surjewala reportedly held a late-evening meeting on Sunday with both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar to review possible legal and political options.

The meeting was also attended by Karnataka Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty and the Chief Minister’s political advisor Ponnanna.

During the discussions, Siddaramaiah is understood to have highlighted the legal obligation arising from the Supreme Court order, while Shivakumar reportedly explained the political and organisational complications the party could face if elections are held before completion of the voter revision exercise.