Karnataka - Bangalore   

Rebel indignant at being overlooked by party On the campaign trail

— Photos: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

Reaching out: M. Muniswamy, who is contesting the Assembly elections as an independent candidate, meeting voters in Shantinagar constituency in Bangalore on Saturday and (right) the former Chief Minister S.M. Krishna accompanying Congress candidate from Shantinagar N.A. Haris during his election campaign.

BANGALORE: It appeared to be a coincidence that the party against whom he has a grouse for denying him the nomination was campaigning in the same area. The presence of the official Congress candidate and his supporters in Austin Town clearly displeased M. Muniswamy, who is contesting as an independent from Shantinagar Assembly constituency in Bangalore.

Mr. Muniswamy, who has won twice as a Congress candidate from the constituency, did not bother to conceal his indignation. “I have given you houses. Remember to vote for the television. Do not be carried away by what others say,” he told his voters. As for his audience, some muttered their sympathy while others looked on impassively.

The spry 65-year-old Mr. Muniswamy, a former HMT employee, went about his campaign in Austin Town. “It really hurts when the party does not give ticket to workers like me who have been with the party since the beginning. I have been overlooked for a person who has offered money,” Mr. Muniswamy alleged.

Though taking on the national party was tough, “I have the support of these people. I have provided them shelter, which is now worth about one lakh,” Mr. Muniswamy said pointing to some huts and an apartment, which, he claimed, were built under the Ashraya housing scheme during his tenure as an MLA. “I have provided space for a church, a mosque and worked for bringing communal harmony in the area,” he said.

Mr. Muniswamy was accompanied by some of his well-wishers and a few children, who led the campaign with slogan shouting. They included G. Parthiban, an officer in a public sector undertaking, who said, “He has helped people like me to come up in life. Whatever I am today is all because of him. I want to stand by him in these difficult times and express my gratitude.”

Mr. Parthiban’s friend T. Patrick said Mr. Muniswamy was accessible to people and had been attending to problems regardless of being in power or not.

Contrary to these statements, some residents did express their displeasure over the performance of Mr. Muniswamy. “He has not cared about our problems. Waste water continues to flow along these narrow lanes; we continue to search for drinking water … Our problems are just heard. Nothing is done to solve them. He (Muniswamy) is inaccessible, we are seeing him only now,” said Rosyamma, a 50-year-old woman who has been staying in the area for 30 years.

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