Mandya politics taking heating up
Even before the Lok Sabha elections are announced, the politics in Mandya region is already gaining volume. Caste and cinema is ruling people’s minds these days. Now Mandya is witnessing the culmination of these two. In the backdrop of actor and politician Ambarish’s demise, his wife Sumalatha is trying to gain entry into politics by riding the sympathy wave. But Congress is hesitant to offer ticket to Sumalatha owing to the fact that the party has already submitted Mandya constituency to JD(S).
Ambarish wasn’t too loyal to Congress towards the end of his days. He had given open statements against Siddaramaiah during the Vidhan Sabha election time. There are also allegations that he worked against Congress. Hence even Congress wasn’t too keen on staging Sumalatha from here. There is a plan to stop Sumalatha’s foray into politics by way of handing over Mandya to JD(S). But Sumalatha is highly bent upon contesting from Mandya. One wonders whether she’d be doing so on Congress ticket or independently, if Congress does not offer her the ticket. The final decision is awaited.
Ambarish was not just an actor, but someone who was in touch with the people at grassroots level too. Hence his entry into politics was easy and natural. But Sumalatha does not possess such qualities. The only identity she has is that of being Ambarish’s wife. It has been ages since she left cinema industry. She hasn’t ever identified herself with Ambarish’s politics or his choices, publicly. She is unaware of the undercurrents of politics as well. At the same time, Devegowda family has had deeper roots in Mandya politics. Just as Sumalatha’s cinema background, Gowda’s family too done it’s time in cinema related fields. Gowda’s grandsons Nikhil and Prajwal have identified themselves in Mandya politics. Sumalatha is yet to begin to create a base for herself among people in Mandya. But Nikhil is already actively involved in creating a base of party activists and workers. Hence it would be difficult for Sumalatha to face all this alone without any help or guidance.
This is a tailor made situation for BJP to make its mark. It is now inevitable that she joins BJP to contest elections as she wishes. State minister and CM’s brother Revanna has issued some irresponsible statements about actor Sumalatha. “It hasn’t even been a few months since Ambarish passed away. Sumalatha already wants to join politics. Why is she in such a hurry?” This statement cannot be dismissed as a callous one. Because he hasn’t only defended it, but also refused to apologise. There is no law that prohibits a woman from coming out of the house and participate in any public event after her husband dies.
This is an unconstitutional and anti-democratic anti-women statement. This is a blatant show of privileged patriarchal mindset. Revanna has indirectly told Sumalatha that she has lost her husband and she must limit herself to her house. Widespread criticism has flown against this statement by Revanna. His arrogance and loose talk may be well used by Sumalatha to her benefit. Sympathy may turn into votes for sure. Revanna has criticized Sumalatha’s cinema stint as well. He has conveniently forgotten that his family members are in cinema too. If one is political acting, one can say the same thing about Gowda’s grandsons too!
This Lok Sabha elections, the entire Deve Gowda clan is planning to contest the elections. And yet Devegowda is saying he hasn’t indulged in “family politics”. He says all the members are coming into politics on their own strengths and have worked hard enough. Devegowda is a statesman. He rose to the level of a PM from village level grassroots and farmer leader. His sons do not have that background as he does. Everyone is aware of route Kumaraswamy took to be the CM first time. If conniving and opportunism were ‘political qualities’, even HDK is talented then. One thing is for sure. If not for Devegowda’s background, the children wouldn’t have grown to this level. His grandsons do not have even that advantage of their fathers do. Hence Devegowda needn’t have explained that he wasn’t engaging in family politics.
Because every politician today is engaged in family politics. People feel this is better than the politics a man without family is doing as the PM of the country. The road to success is not any easy for Nikhil in Mandya. Voters may take the memory of Ambarish till the voting booth. And the coalition parties would have presented an opportunity to make foray into Mandya to BJP on a platter.
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MP: 7-year-old girl raped and murdered; minor relative detained
Barwani (MP), Jan 28 (PTI) Police on Wednesday detained a 17-year-old relative of a seven-year-old girl in Barwani district of Madhya Pradesh for allegedly raping her and killing her by throwing her into a canal, a police official said.
Superintendent of Police Jagdish Dawar told reporters that the body of the child was recovered from the Indira Sagar Canal on January 26, following information from residents of a village in the Rajpur police station area of the district.
He said the post-mortem report concluded severe injuries to the girl’s private parts and attributed her death to drowning.
Dawar said a 17-year-old boy, a close relative of the girl, has been detained in connection with the rape-murder.
The teenager told the police that he kidnapped the girl from her home on the night of January 25 while her family members were asleep, took her to a nearby canal and raped her, according to the official.
When the girl started screaming during the sexual assault, the minor boy allegedly threw her into the canal, with the intention of killing her. The child drowned in the water body, the official said.
The detained minor will be produced in a juvenile court.
A case has been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and an investigation is underway, he added.
