The Hindu : Police officers shed khaki for khadi

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 22, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka

Police officers shed khaki for khadi

By K.V. Subramanya

BANGALORE, FEB. 21. Politics has turned out to be a favourite activity for serving and retired police officers in Karnataka. While some retired police officers have entered politics in the last few days, some serving officers are likely to shed their khaki and wear khadi in the days to come.

The Assistant Commissioner of Police (City Crime Branch), Abdul Azeem, has put in his papers and sought voluntary retirement. Mr. Azeem met the former Prime Minister, H.D. Deve Gowda, recently and discussed his entry into politics. Mr. Azeem is likely to contest the Legislative Assembly elections from the Binnypet constituency in the city.

It is said that another Assistant Commissioner of Police (City Crime Branch), G. Ahmed Bava, is also planning to enter politics. There is speculation that he may contest the elections from the Vittal Assembly constituency in Dakshina Kannada District.

H.T. Sangliana and L. Revannasiddaiah, former Commissioners of Police, Bangalore, have joined the BJP and the Congress, respectively. They too are planning to enter the election arena. Mr. Sangliana is reported to be trying to get the BJP ticket from the Bangalore North Lok Sabha constituency while Mr. Revanasiddaiah is likely to be fielded by the Congress from the Nanjangud Assembly constituency.

The police officer-turned-filmstar, B.C. Patil, is all set to contest the Assembly elections from Hirekerur in Dharwad district as the All India Progressive Janata Dal candidate. The retired Assistant Commissioner of Police, Dasharath Doddamani, a close relative of the Home Minister, Mallikarjun Kharge, is planning to contest the Assembly elections from Shanthinagar (Reserved) constituency in the city on the Janata Dal (S) ticket. The former Director-General and Inspector-General of Police, Veerabhadraiah, who joined the BJP after his retirement, was arguably the first retired IPS officer from the State to enter politics. Mr. Veerabhadraiah had unsuccessfully contested the Rajya Sabha elections on the BJP ticket.

The former Commissioner of Police, Bangalore, P. Kodandaramaiah, had taken voluntary retirement and contested the Lok Sabha elections from Chitradurga in 1996 as a Janata Dal nominee. While he made it to the Lok Sabha in 1996, he lost the next elections. Although another retired Inspector-General of Police, Sreenivas Alva, had joined the BJP and campaigned for the party during elections, he did not enter the poll fray. The former minister, D.T. Jayakumar, who had earlier represented the Nanjangud Assembly segment twice, worked as a police sub-inspector before joining politics. S. Chennigappa, JD(S) MLA from Koratagere in Tumkur district, was a traffic constable in Malleswaram in the city.

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