'Apple Invested Here, Not In Andhra': Siddaramaiah Snaps Amid Investment Row

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah picked up the baton Friday in the increasingly acerbic spat with Andhra Pradesh over crumbling infrastructure and investment in Bengaluru.

Speaking after Andhra and Karnataka ministers Nara Lokesh and Priyank Kharge exchanged bitter swipes on X, and after internet behemoth Google opted to invest $15 billion in Vizag rather than Bengaluru, the Chief Minister said, "Investors will invest where they want to..."

Having 'lost' Google, Siddaramaiah pointed to critics (and Nara Lokesh), "Apple invested here... not in Andhra Pradesh." He also slammed 'deliberate' social media posts targeting Karnataka.

The snap back follows sneering posts by Nara Lokesh and Janata Dal Secular leader Nikhil Kumaraswamy on X Thursday. Lokesh declared 'Karnataka is feeling the burn!' Kumaraswamy, the son of JDS boss HD Kumaraswamy, unfavourably compared the Congress and Andhra's ruling Telugu Desam Party, which, like the JDS, is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

READ | 'Battle Of The Bros' On X As Congress, JDS Clash Over Potholes

This squabble has been running since mid-September, when Rajesh Yabaji, the co-founder of a Bengaluru-based logistics firm, complained about long commute times and poor roads leading to his office of nine years in the Bellandur area.

Lokesh responded swiftly to Yabaji's X post and offered Vizag as an option, and then, as more Bengaluru-based businesses and business leaders, and residents, spoke on the city's infrastructure problems, he began pushing Andhra Pradesh as a potential investment option.

READ | 'Blackmail' Or 'Inefficient'? Karnataka, Andhra Spar Over Potholes, Investment

Lokesh's 'advertisements' drew a scathing response from his Karnataka counterparts.

Kharge spoke of 'weaker ecosystems feeding off stronger ones' and pointed to the city's GDP -to grow 8.5 per cent annually till 2035, making it, potentially, the fastest growing in the world.

After confirmation of Google sinking $15 billion in Andhra to set up an Artificial Intelligence and data hub, Lokesh said on X, "They say Andhra food is spicy. (It) seems some of our investments are too. Some neighbours are already feeling the burn."

READ | After $15 Billion Google 'Win', Nara Lokesh 'Burns' Karnataka In Potholes Row

An unapologetic Lokesh told NDTV last week Andhra had already attracted over $120 billion in investment and admitted the pace of reforms had sparked tensions with Karnataka. However, he said states worried by the pace had to respond. "That is their challenge..." he declared.

Apart from Google, the states have also sparred over a tweet by Biocon chief Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw; she said on X a Chinese colleague asked her "why are the roads (in Bengaluru) so bad... why is there so much garbage... Doesn't the government want to support investment?"

Her tweet - and residents writing to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah threatening to stop paying property tax unless the city's 'killer potholes' and crumbling infrastructure are repaired - led to a fresh row.

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