Governance

While political parties in Bangalore are campaigning for votes, Vote Bengaluru, an initiative by a constellation of city-based NGOs, organised "a dialogue with political parties" on 1 May 2008. Political party candidates were called in to sign a charter put forth by citizens demanding specific responsibilities and accessibility from politicians. B L Shankar, from Indian National Congress at the mike while other candidates look on. The legislative elections of the state are knocking on the door and all parties are getting ready for D-day. At a time when all parties are usually perceived as out to grab votes, this programme…

The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR)'s Karnataka Election Watch committee has compiled information about candidates in various Assembly constituencies using candidates' own disclosure affidavits, mandated by election law. The Election Commission has also issued orders making this information public. The Election Watch committee has now released its first list of candidates with a criminal record contesting the Assembly elections. These are people who contested last time and were re-nominated. Record of Candidates from Bangalore (based on 2004 Affidavit Data) 1. Katta Subramanya Naidu, BJP (Hebbal): FIR. NO. 0589 CR. NO.589/03 u/s 143, 145, 147, 149 353 IPC 1860 2. Nirmal…

I met with an incident recently (13th April 2008).I was riding the bike from RT Nagar, I had to go over the Mekhri circle flyover to take a right from Hebbal road to turn towards IISC road. I turned right while the signal was changing from green to orange.I did not want to stop abruptly and since orange light is meant as a warning, I continued driving. If I had applied a sudden break, the auto right behind me may have hit me.A police constable jumped in front of me from the side of the road asking me to stop.…

Find details of voter rolls, candidate information and polling booth information for the Lok Sabha 2009 elections here »First, it is not too late to register to vote. The last date to register for the Bangalore region was expected to be 23 April, next week. [Update: AROs have apparently stopped accepting applications since April 16 - please see comment below.] Second, if you are already registered and need to check if your name on the rolls, there is a way. This article will get you started. Some background Greater Bangalore consists of 3 districts with its delimited assembly constituencies. Where…

Sarfaraz Sheikh is a techie, as the term goes, who, over the past year, has come to be a good friend, even with his being just about half my age. I first got to know him through his posts in the mailing list of our Save Koramangala group. Later, common interests brought us together. I have always marveled at his resourcefulness. Hoysala patrol vehicles (pic courtesy: Bangalore City Police) Generally, it's people of my age group who bother with civic issues. But, that's beginning to change, personified by the likes of Sarfy (as he is commonly known), and perhaps that's…

Sure enough, the Lokayukta is doing a good job in rounding up corrupt and inefficient officials and we congratulate them for that. However, we at Citizen Matters always wondered what made the Lokayukta tick, what happened to the people who were booked, and whether the Karnataka Lokayukta Act was powerful enough to make the Lokayukta an extremely effective anti-corruption organisation. Well, we decided to interview with Justice Santosh Hegde, the present Lokayukta and then draw our own conclusions from what emerged.67-year-old Justice Hedge took office in August 2006 for a five-year term. He was born in Karkala taluk, now in…