GENRE: Voices

Prof B K Chandrashekhar, MLC and former IT minister, is Congress's candidate for Basavangudi this election. Chandrashekhar, 76, is a retired IIMB professor, and has worked in other universities in India and abroad. He has a post graduation in law from Leeds University, and a doctorate from Oxford University. He is currently one of KPCC's Vice-Presidents. He is also a former Chairman of the Legislative Council.Though the KPCC VP, Chandrashekhar talks less on the party's stand, and more on his personal views. He also positions himself rather as an exception within the party - as part of a minority that…

Abdul Azeem, 60 is a former Assistant Commissioner of Police, while also being a former MLC, from Hebbal. Now standing on a JD(S) ticket, Azeem has served under a gamut of leaders from all leanings. Retiring in 2004, when he still had nine years of service to go, Azeem stood for the Assembly polls that same year from Binnypet and lost. Azeem's advantage is that he has lived and worked in the area, is better known and has a history of service.However, his plans to resolve Hebbal's key issues are sketchy, with talks of relegating growth to outside of Bangalore limits,…

He drove into Chaithanya Samarpan Layout at Kadugodi, around 5 kms north of Whitefield, in an entourage of three vehicles. All of the vehicles were the bulky SUV-types. The owners association had organised a meeting on Sunday (April 28) morning. Pic: acsrinivasa.com. A C Srinivasa is the Congress' candidate for the Mahadevpura constituency in north-eastern Bengaluru. He is the local man who rose from the grassroots to district panchayat president. His immovable properties are worth Rs.83 crores. He is clearly a rich landowner. He was Zilla panchayat president till 2011 and is currently Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee secretary. He was…

The Supreme Court guidelines for school bus safety will come into effect from May 1, 2013. But it is no consolation for the family of the three-year-old who was knocked down by his school bus in June last year, or for the six-year-old girl from Chennai who fell to death through a hole in the floor of the bus.School bus accidents are so common in India that they often don't make more than a single column in newspapers. Yet parents are surprisingly silent about safety issues and reluctant to take on schools on this issue. Almost all parents I spoke…

What politicians and political parties think of us urban middle/upper middle class peopleThey look at us as apathetic at best and cynical at worst. So they don't feel the need to engage with us because we won't be a part of any political base that they can build on.What we think of politicians and political partiesIneffective at best and corrupt at worst. It doesn't matter who comes to power because nothing will change for the good so what's the point of voting and helping someone amass wealth and commit atrocities.How does this status quo work for usThis status quo doesn't…

Its 8:30 am and Doctor MRV Prasad is on his rounds - but this time it's a different kind of rounds. Dr Prasad is contesting the MLA elections from the Padmanabhanagar constituency on a JD (S) ticket. He is constantly going door-to-door asking people to vote for him. The campaign is a low-key affair, with only a handful of supporters walking with Prasad. Dr Prasad has been a physician in Thyagarajanagar for the last 40 years. A man on scooter, on spotting Dr Prasad, stops and tells him that he went by his nursing home but there was no one…

"A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user."- Theodore RooseveltIn democracy, vote is the rifle. Vote is the power. Vote is the panacea to ills of the society. Vote is the instrument to bring about the desired changes in one's surroundings, society and country. Note: This website will soon be migrated to a new system.  If you face any issues, do mail us. You can also reach us through Twitter or Facebook! Bengaluru This Week Get our free weekly newsletter. Name Email Bengaluru This Week archives. The Indian democracy has two challenges.Making everyone vote.Voting…

It is election season in our state and in our city. Citizens of our state and city are faced with that important question - who to vote for? I am repeatedly asked this question by many Bengalureans wherever they encounter me - be it my morning walk or when I am out for a social occasion or at work.It is not my business to tell you who to vote for but I can certainly help you understand the challenges that we face as a city and state and pose the questions to the person who will represent you in our…

It's a sign of our times that while we are positive about many aspects of our lives, we are negative about politics. Many of us choose to live in an insulated world, scorning the ‘filth' of the political machinery. Note: This website will soon be migrated to a new system.  If you face any issues, do mail us. You can also reach us through Twitter or Facebook! Bengaluru This Week Get our free weekly newsletter. Name Email Bengaluru This Week archives. For those who do so, let me tell you that you are wrong. Let me also tell you why you…

Note: This website will soon be migrated to a new system.  If you face any issues, do mail us. You can also reach us through Twitter or Facebook! Bengaluru This Week Get our free weekly newsletter. Name Email Bengaluru This Week archives. I'm a just-so person. Have no political affiliation, do not belong to a community that has political clout or to any significant group / union that can make noise and is sought after by political parties (like some auto drivers who throw tantrums, forget what their job is and can go on a "pre-poll" strike so that they can…