Chai-wala-turned-crorepati to contest against BJP sitting MLA
Bengaluru: A 43-year-old man, who once used to sell tea to make a living and now a billionaire, has filed his nomination for May 12th Assembly polls as an Independent candidate from Bommanahalli constituency in Bengaluru.
With declared assets worth Rs. 339 crore, Mr Kumar is the richest Independent candidate to have filed nomination papers for the upcoming polls. He also owns a fleet of 16 cars, including imported brands though he wouldn't name them.
For Mr Kumar, who is from Kerala, struggle began early in life. After his father died, his mother worked as a house help to look after her three children.
With resources stretched at home, Mr Kumar could not study beyond the third standard. He left home for Bengaluru when he was just 11 in 1985.
With no place to stay in an alien city, he used to sleep in front of closed shops at night. One day, a kind-hearted man gave him food and offered a job in his shop. I was told to carry mangoes from one place to another, he said.
Soon after, he started selling tea at small companies and later he got more people and expanded his tea-selling business. I started earning more and even managed to save, he claimed.
His fortunes changed after marriage when the couple bought a plot in the city to build a house of their own. But he sold the land after somebody offered him double the price. It was his venture into the world of real estate that, according to him, yielded high returns.
"I started buying small plots and sold them for many times the price. That was in the late 90s," he said, claiming that he made crores in a span of six years.
Eight years ago, he set up his own company called M J Infrastructure in Bomanahalli. He says he is also into philanthropic work that includes building a church and a temple as well.
Pitted against the BJP's Sathish Reddy who holds the Bomanahalli seat, Anil Kumar seems confident of a win. I have the Almighty's blessings and support of the people, he said.
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Assam to lift all cases against Koch Rajbongshis in Foreigners' Tribunals: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma
Guwahati, Apr 4 (PTI): The Assam cabinet has decided to lift all cases pending against people from the Koch Rajbongshi community in the Foreigners' Tribunals, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday.
They will also no longer carry the tag of 'D' or doubtful voters, he said.
''There are 28,000 cases pending in different Foreigners' Tribunals in the state against people of the community. The cabinet has taken a historic decision of lifting the cases with immediate effect,'' Sarma said at a press conference here after the cabinet meeting.
The government believes that the Koch Rajbongshis are an indigenous community of the state and they are an inextricable part of ''our social and cultural fabric'', he asserted.
The people of this community are poor and have suffered a lot over the years, he said.
''They will no longer carry the tag of foreigners or ‘D’ voters,'' the CM said.
Foreigners Tribunals are quasi-judicial bodies, particularly in Assam, established to determine if a person residing in India is a "foreigner" as defined by the Foreigners Act of 1946, based on the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order of 1964.
These tribunals are designed to address matters related to citizenship and the presence of “foreigners” in India, specifically focusing on cases where someone is suspected of being an illegal immigrant.
There are 100 Foreigners’ Tribunals across Assam.
The Koch Rajbongshis have a sizeable presence in Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya, and parts of Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan, and they demand Scheduled Tribe status.
