The stalemate over Greater Bengaluru Development continued unabated on Saturday with senior Karnataka minister Krishna Byre Gowda refusing to take charge of the portfolio, citing "incomplete" allocation of key city-related departments.

Chief minister D.K. Shivakumar has kept Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) and the Bengaluru Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA) — two key urban planning agencies under Greater Bengaluru Development — with himself.

Gowda is waiting for Shivakumar to hand the agencies over to him. He travelled to Delhi earlier this week to meet AICC leaders and seek clarity on his portfolio. It's learned that the Congress top brass has asked Shivakumar to resolve the issue.

The senior minister said the BDA and BMRDA were central to several major infrastructure and development projects planned for Bengaluru and needed to be brought under the Greater Bengaluru Development portfolio.

"The chief minister and the party have given me the difficult responsibility of looking after Bengaluru Development. I don't see it as a power, because this is a big responsibility amid huge expectations from the people of Bengaluru, the chief minister and the party," Gowda told reporters at Vidhan Soudha on Saturday.

"The people of Bengaluru and the party expect meaningful as well as people-centric reforms. Such expectations can only be met if there is clarity on my responsibilities," he added.

He responded with a smile to a question on whether he would abstain from taking charge of the portfolio until the issue was resolved.