‘He should think about resolving the issues…’: BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai on DK Shivakumar’s garbage disposal remark

DHARWAD: Hubballi BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai on Thursday responded to Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar’s remark on the “garbage dumping” issue, saying that the Deputy CM should rather focus on resolving the problem than making such statements. Tenginkai said that Congress should stop playing the blame game on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“He should think about resolving the issues, whereas he is just concentrating on making statements about dumping garbage in front of R Ashok’s house or the BJP office. This has also happened before during the BJP’s tenure, but we did not throw garbage in front of Congress’s MLA or its party office. We tried to find solutions to the problems, but the statement of the Deputy Chief Minister was not right… and we tried resolving the issue instead of making such rhetoric statements. Congress should quit playing blame games on the BJP…” he said.

#WATCH | Dharwad | On Karnataka Dy CM DK Shivakumar’s statement on Garbage Disposal issue, BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai says, “He should think about resolving the issues, whereas he is just concentrating on making statements… This has also happened before during BJP’s tenure and we… pic.twitter.com/7vEjAiQBcB

— ANI (@ANI) February 19, 2026

Earlier, Shivakumar slammed BJP MLA Dheeraj Muniraju, saying that he allegedly stopped a garbage truck to protest in Doddaballapur, further warning that if the BJP members don’t behave respectfully, garbage will be “dumped right in front of their houses”.

Shivakumar alleged that BJP MLAs (specifically mentioning Aravind Limbavali and Dheeraj Muniraju) are deliberately obstructing garbage trucks from disposing of waste in the outer zones of Bengaluru. He claimed that this is a tactic by the opposition to “blackmail” the Congress-led state government into allocating development funds to their constituencies.

“If they behave with respect, fine. If not, I will invoke ESMA (Essential Services Maintenance Act). I will show no mercy and make sure garbage is dumped right in front of their houses. I will take the same garbage and have it dumped near the BJP office… It should go to R Ashok’s house, Vijayendra’s house, or else to the BJP office – that’s it,” he said.

“They are blackmailing us, demanding development funds for their constituencies. If an accident occurs, action will be taken in accordance with the law,” Shivakumar added. (ANI)