Bengaluru, Jan. 14 -- Karnataka Minister MB Patil on Wednesday dismissed BJP allegations that the state government prioritised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's visit, saying the Chancellor had a pre-scheduled programme and there was no meeting scheduled with the Chief Minister.

"The German Chancellor had his own pre-scheduled program. There was no interaction with the Chief Minister. He had just arrived from Ahmedabad. He didn't even come to the reception lounge. If there had been any interaction with the Chief Minister, he would have been there. The BJP will criticise; what else do they have to do besides criticise?", Patil told reporters.

Patil said he represented the state government during the vis...