Bengaluru, 8 May

Karnataka Election Commissioner GS Sangreshi on Friday said the elections to the five city corporations under the GBA will likely be held between 14 and 24 June.

He said the exact date for the polls will be announced after a week, asserting that the power to postpone the elections, as requested by the Greater Bengaluru Authorities, lies with the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court had directed the Karnataka government and the State Election Commission (SEC) to conduct the local body elections by 30 June.

The SEC on Friday held a consultation meeting with the GBA Chief Commissioner M Maheshwar Rao and the Commissioners of the five city corporations regarding the election schedule.

“I informed GBA officials that only the election date has to be fixed, as all other measures and formalities for conducting the polls have already been completed,” Sangreshi told reporters after the meeting. “They requested the Commission to consider factors such as rains, exams, census work, SIR, and manpower shortages while fixing the date and sought additional time.  I told them this meeting was not for seeking time… I do not have the power to postpone the elections as requested.”

The Supreme Court has already given a “final opportunity,” and both the SEC and the government must comply with its directions, Sangreshi said.

The matter regarding manpower shortages and other concerns raised by GBA officials during the meeting is already before the Supreme Court, and the State Election Commission has also filed a petition in this regard. The case is yet to be heard.

“Since the matter has not come up for hearing, the earlier order remains binding. Therefore, preparations are underway,” he added.

The tenure of the previous elected body under the erstwhile Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) ended on 10 September, 2020, and since then, a government-appointed administrator has been managing its day-to-day affairs. Bengaluru was divided into five municipal corporations—Central, East, West, North, and South—under the Greater Bengaluru Authority in September 2025, replacing the BBMP.

Sangreshi had earlier said that elections to the five corporations would be conducted using ballot papers instead of Electronic Voting Machines, following the Congress government’s recommendation.