The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : New voters hold key in Mahadevapura

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Thursday, May 01, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

New voters hold key in Mahadevapura

K.N. Venkatasubba Rao and B.S. Ramesh

The constituency presents a picture of contradictions, old areas lack facilities

BANGALORE: Carved out of the parts of the erstwhile Varthur Assembly constituency and the erstwhile Mahadevapura City Municipal Council (CMC) is a part of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).

IT majors

Formed after the merger of the CMC with several villages and suburbs of Bangalore following the delimitation of constituencies, Mahadevapura is home to most of the city’s IT majors apart from housing Electronics City and IT Park.

Over the last few years, magnificent villas and huge apartment blocks have come up there.

But the area continues to be neglected by the civic authorities. Even after a year of its inclusion in the BBMP limits, residents continue to be deprived of basic amenities.

Water is a scarce commodity here, and people are forced to depend heavily on water supplied through tankers by BWSSB (only in certain pockets) and private agencies.

It is a constituency full of contradictions. On the one hand stinking slums, potholed roads, substandard underground drainage system and inadequate streetlights have made life difficult for people of this new constituency.

On the other, expensive housing conclaves, rich apartments, well laid four-lane roads, posh restaurants, imposing structures of IT companies adduce complex character to the constituency.

Fight

The part of the constituency was governed by the Congress before its merger with the BBMP and delimitation. Of the 14 candidates in the fray, the fight is said to be between Aravinda Limbavali of the BJP, B. Shivanna of Congress, Muniyappa R. of Bahujan Samaj Party and Muniraju R. of Janata Dal (Secular).

But local people point out that the fight was only between the BJP and the Congress.

It is tough to understand in whose favour the votes will swing in the changed political situation. The choices of an estimated 15 per cent of fresh voters and influence of IT sector on the traditional voting pattern on various counts is “decisive”, it is said.

‘Heavy weight’

Mr. Limbavali is an engineer and BJP MLC. He is a known “heavy weight” in the political circles. His counter part from the Congress, Mr. Shivanna, a postgraduate in science and a law graduate and a known business man.

The major complaint against all the four major candidates is that they are outsiders. Mr. Limbvavali is married to a daughter of Subramanya, president of Shakti Ganapathi Temple Trust and a member of HAL Sanitary Board. He claims that he has been residing at Thippasandra in the constituency for 20 years. On the other hand, Mr. Shivanna hails from Horamavu and he has not identified himself with the constituency.

Voters of Pattanduru, Prashant Layout and many other small townships in the vicinity of International Tech Park complain that the authorities concerned have provided “dwelling places” and not handed over the possession certificates.

They say Mr. Limbavali is the first person to explain them about the importance of obtaining the certificates. He has promised that he will work in that direction and welfare of the constituency whether they elect him or not. After a prolonged suffering, they started believing with Mr. Limabavali’s view that development of the constituency is possible only when the Centre and State governments, BBMP, MNCs and public all together join hands.

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