Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday dismissed BJP allegations that the death of a college student in Bengaluru during a road accident was caused by potholes, calling the claims a “hoax”.

The remarks come a day after 20-year-old Dhanushree, a final-year B Com student, died after being allegedly hit from behind by a tipper truck near Budigere Cross. Reacting to the BJP’s claims, Shivakumar said, “It is all false. They are only spreading a hoax. Because of them (the saffron party), all this has been created.”

Following the incident, the BJP alleged that 60 per cent of Karnataka, including Bengaluru, has turned “into a death trap due to misrule by the Congress government.” The party’s official Karnataka handle on ‘X’ said, “It is unfortunate that a student has lost her life because of a pothole on the roads of Silicon City. The roads of Bengaluru, which were supposed to facilitate smooth traffic, are instead endangering the lives of commuters every day. This exposes the poor performance of D K Shivakumar.”

The BJP also questioned Shivakumar on a recent deadline given to contractors to fill potholes and the utilisation of Rs 750 crore allocated for the purpose. “What happened to the deadline you had given to officials? Whose pocket has the Rs 750 crore gone into? How many more innocent lives will your government claim?” the party said.