Bengaluru, May 23 -- Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday defended the state government's decision to rename Ramanagara district as Bengaluru South, saying that the power to rename any district lies with the state. He also clarified that the decision was made after consulting the local population.

Refuting the allegations, Siddaramaiah said, "The state government has the power to rename Ramanagara as Bangalore South District."

He added that the opinion of the people in the area was sought before finalising the decision.

Speaking to reporters at the helipad in KR Nagar, Siddaramaiah responded to Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy's criticism that renaming Ramanagara district as Bangalore South distorts the district's history.

"Th...