R Ashok, one of BJP’s most recognisable Vokkaliga faces, is a five-time MLA. He currently represents Padmanabhnagar constituency in South Bengaluru, but was first elected from the Uttarahalli constituency in 1997.
Ashok has held multiple ministerial berths in the Bharatiya Janata Party government between 2008 and 2013, including Home and Transport. He was one of the Deputy Chief Ministers of the State when the BJP government was in power.
He claims credit for modernising the Transport department with enhanced of technology during his tenure as its minister.
In the recent times he has been in the news for Bagair Hukum case where he is accused of distributing land to his family and other BJP leaders during his tenure as the Chairman of the Bagar Hukum Regularisation Committee. He recently got an injunction against media outlets, both print and electronic against reporting his alleged involvement in the Bagair Hukum case (which was previously quashed by the High Court of Karnataka). The Anti Corruption Bureau filed charges against the MLA in the same case in 2018.
R Ashok was the Chairman of Public Accounts Committee in last assembly, between 2013 and 2018.
- Attendance % in Assembly: 81
- Starred questions: 13
- Unstarred questions: 180
Also see: Myneta profile of R Ashok
R Ashok in news
In assembly:
December 9, 2014: Ashok continuously requested the House to discuss the problems of farmers. This was the day when farmers from across the state had reached Vidhana Soudha in order to demand attention to their problems. The session later discussed the issue.
December 16, 2014: Ashok claimed that Bengaluru has only 20% of Bengalureans who were originally from the city and the rest are all migrants from the rest of the state and other states.
March 18, 2015: Ashok spoke about the death of D K Ravi and accused the government of planting stories in the media. George retaliated, by saying that it was BJP that was planting stories.
July 5, 2016: R Ashok asked the government whether the police station limits be modified to have uniform area covered under each jurisdiction, as some stations had just 2km coverage, while others had more than 10km. The Home Minister replied that there is a scientific plan ready which will be implemented after considerations.
(This data has been taken from the uncorrected versions of the debates uploaded in kla.kar.nic.in, but does not include expunged words or subjects. The data was compiled using a simple word search for the MLA’s name in different combinations. this data may not be complete.)
In media
October 29, 2014: The survey conducted by DAKSH published in The Times of India, placed the BJP leader in 11th place, rating his performance at 5.82 on a scale of 10.
January 9, 2015: The cabinet approved the removal of 140 buses inducted under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNURM) by the BJP government when R Ashoka was the Transport Minister. The opposition said this was done to save mounting debts incurred by the BMTC and KSRTC.
May 27, 2015: Going against the rules enlisted in the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act stating that panchayat elections need to remain apolitical, pamphlets were printed and distributed advertising the faces of BJP leaders including former deputy Chief Minister R Ashoka.
November 9, 2015: Lokayukta gives a clean chit to R Ashok, in denotification case registered in 2011, related to a land in Uttarahalli Taluk.
February 26, 2016: Ashok was not considered for the BJP’s party president post in Karnataka as he failed to bring back the party to power in 2013 despite having a stronghold over the Vokkaliga community.
March 18, 2017: During the ‘Janaspandana – Citizens for Change’ initiative organised by The Deccan Herald, the residents of Padmanabha Nagar, demanded the MLA to install CCTV cameras to monitor rising crime rates in the locality.
August 20, 2017: As deputy floor leader, R Ashoka, pointed fingers at the CM for allegedly misusing the power of the ACB to throw accusations at his political opponents.
September 5, 2017: The police arrested BJP leaders including the MLA R Ashoka at the Mangaluru Chalo Bike Rally organised by the party for blocking traffic near Freedom Park.
September 16, 2017: The BJP MLA, proposed a plan as Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee, to revive the Arkavathi-Kumudvathi river basin to supply water to West Bengaluru, and clean up the TG Halli reservoir, which is to be completed in the next two years.
November 3, 2017: The BJP’s first rally kicking off assembly campaigning in the state by national president Amit Shah was low-key with only 20,000 participants, compared with the 1 lakh turnout expected. MLA R Ashoka failed to bring crowds to the Nava Karnataka Parivarthana rath yatra, which he was responsible for arranging.
November 10, 2017: KPCC member M A Saleem complained to Anti-Corruption Bureau against R Ashok, regarding violations of Bagair-hukum scheme, howevr ACB is yet to register a complaint.
January 9, 2018: ACB officials register FIR against R Ashok in Bagair Hukum case.
January 21, 2018: R Ashoka was unhappy with Yeddyurappa’s plans to offer Congress leaders, M Krishnappa and his son MLA Priya Krishna, seats in the party to win Vokkaliga votes, that they previously elicited through his influence.
January 25, 2018: The High Court stayed the proceedings of the investigation of the Bagar-Hukum land scam in which the BJP leader is the prime accused.