mla

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…

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Fourteen assembly election candidates from the city have been endorsed by the Bangalore Political Action Committee (B.PAC). B.PAC team includes Biocon Head Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Chairman of Manipal Global Education Services T V Mohandas Pai, and former IAS officer K Jairaj. The rest of the team includes more corporate honchos, and sportspersons and artists. Candidates have been selected from across political parties - there are five Congress candidates, three from BJP, three from Lok Satta, two from JD(S) and one from KJP. BPAC says that political ideology was not a factor in candidate selection. B.PAC will contribute to the candidates'…

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  N A Haris, Congress MLA from Shanthinagar, is contesting once more from his constituency. Like all other contestants, Haris, 46, too is busy trying to woo the voters by holding padyatras to various areas in his constituency. Haris was in news recently for his role in the eviction of about 1000 families from Ejipura EWS (Economically Weaker Section) quarters. Citizen Matters caught up with him during two of his evening padayatras - to Vivek Nagar and Vinayaknagar. In this exclusive interview, he talks about his plans for Shanthinagar, his views on Ejipura evictions and more. Pic: facebook.com/mlaharis Excerpts from…

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The space beyond Wipro's corporate office in Sarjapur has been projected as the new Whitefield of Bangalore. There are many real estate development projects on the Sarjapur-Attibele road which is under the Sarjapura Gram Panchayat and Bangalore Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA). As a resident of the area since August 2012, I have been told that real estate developers or builders, started advertising their plans from the late 1990's or early 2000. These developers vie with each other to portray how big they are and dangle the list of amenities in newly constructed or upcoming buildings, on large hoardings across…

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Narendra Babu's phone keeps ringing. Some are from his office, but many are by the voters of his constituency. One such phone call is from a worried woman whose child has to undergo an operation; she doesn't have funds. Her husband is an auto driver. They are not sure how to get government aid. He tells her to meet him along with all related documents if any, at his office on Monday or Thursday, during the official public meetings.The venue is Anushrutha Foundation, his NGO, a little ahead of his office-cum-residence. Another woman who has come to the NGO wants…

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The Lok Satta party headed by Jayaprakash Narayan is flexing its muscles in Bangalore as the state gets ready for elections in May. The party has named 15 candidates for MLA elections in the state, including a second list that was released on March 27th. Nine are contesting in Bangalore city itself, and the rest from other parts of Karnataka. Lok Satta has a reformist positioning in the Indian political sphere. It supports clean governance, setting up of a strong Lokpal, liberalising agriculture, closing of populist subsidies, FDI in retail, and so forth. Jayaprakash Narayan. Pic: Loksattaparty.org Jayaprakash Narayan, 57,…

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Earlier this month, I sent the following letter to the The Chief Justice of Karnataka regarding storm water drains, an issue that I have tried to take up with the concerned government authorities without much success. Remarks that the High Court (HC) of Karnataka made on storm water drains prompted me to write this.The Chief JusticeHigh Court of KarnatakaBangalore 560001 March 13, 2013KIND ATTN: The Honourable Judges of Karnataka High CourtSubject: STORM WATER DRAINS (SWD's) IN BANGALORE CITYI understand from the newspapers that the Honourable Court is seized with a matter concerning storm water drains in the city and has…

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Come May, and Bangaloreans will join citizens in other parts of the state to decide who will be steering the political fate of the city and Karnataka over the next five years. As voters, we are all accustomed to candidates across parties making promises or making excuses, especially before elections. But do we know enough about our chosen political representative - our area MLA - to really make an informed choice? ♦ How vocal has your MLA been in the Assembly about issues that concern you and your constituency? ♦ How has he utilised the local area development (LAD) funds…

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It was a dull and cloudy afternoon when I was on my way to Jayanagar to meet first-time MLA B.N.Vijaykumar (BJP). I was not too excited about the interview as, like most of us, I was quite sure of getting long winded answers for simple questions. The first impression, as I entered the spic and span office, though, came as a surprise. I expected piles of folders and paper lying on the tables but I was astonished to see this almost paperless office with an executive constantly working on the computer. The grey haired bachelor in his late forties welcomed…

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