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The IT Ministers of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh had a bitter showdown on social media platform X (Twitter) over attracting tech firms and startups to their respective states.
Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge termed Lokesh’s strategy “desperate scavenging”, suggesting that the AP government was acting like a parasite. In response, Lokesh hit back, saying Priyank needed to fix his “arrogance” along with Bengaluru’s potholes.
It all started with Nara Lokesh reacting to a report on companies moving out of Bengaluru’s Outer Ring Road towards North Bengaluru due to poor infrastructure.
Earlier in September, a logistics company called BlackBuck announced that it was vacating its office on Bengaluru’s ORR in Bellandur, citing poor infrastructure and long commute times for employees. At the time, Lokesh had asked the company to relocate to Visakhapatnam.
The Greater Bengaluru IT Companies and Industries Association called the BlackBuck exit “a wake-up call,” saying there was an urgent need for the Karnataka government to work on improving roads, metro connectivity, and public utilities. Former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai and Biocon Executive Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw also said the issue needed urgent government intervention.
On October 1, Moneycontrol reported that Blackbuck was moving to Whitefield and Koramangala, and many other firms were also planning to move from ORR to Whitefield and North Bengaluru.
Reacting to this news, Lokesh said, “North sounds good. Slightly more north is Anantapur.. where we are building a world class aerospace and defence ecosystem!”
To this, Priyank Kharge replied saying, “It is natural for weaker ecosystems to feed off stronger ones. Nothing wrong with that, but when it turns into desperate scavenging, it shows more weakness than strength.”
The Karnataka Minister went on to list Bengaluru’s advantages in terms of economic growth, property markets, urbanisation, etc., saying his government would “continue to build infrastructure for the rapid growth we are experiencing.”
He then suggested that Lokesh was acting like a parasite, trying to invite Bengaluru firms to AP. “By the way, what is an organism that lives in or on an organism of another species and benefits by deriving nutrients at the other's expense called?” Priyank Kharge asked.
Lokesh hit back by calling Priyank arrogant. “Arrogance, like potholes on roads, should be fixed first before the journey gets tripped up!” he said.
Similar arguments have happened in the past over attracting tech companies or industries between Hyderabad and Bengaluru as well.
In 2022, then IT Minister of Telangana KT Rama Rao had reacted to a post complaining about poor infrastructure in Koramangala and HSR, saying, “Pack your bags and move to Hyderabad! We have better physical infrastructure and equally good social infrastructure.”
Now Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka and then state Congress chief DK Shivakumar responded saying that when Congress returns to power in Karnataka, it would “restore the glory of Bengaluru as India’s best city.”