India, Oct. 29 -- Bengaluru's long-running battle over it's proposed tunnel road took an unexpected turn on Tuesday, not over engineering plans or traffic data, but over marriage prospects. Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, in a sharp rebuttal to Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya, quipped, "People even hesitate to marry a boy who doesn't own a car."

The remark came after Surya met Shivakumar to oppose the highly controversial and expensive "car-only" tunnel project, arguing that funds should instead be channelled into expanding the Metro, suburban rail, and last-mile shuttle networks. Surya cited data showing that the tunnel would move only 1,800 cars per hour in one direction, while a Metro line could carry nearly 69,000 passengers fo...