Kannada film actor Shiva Rajkumar’s wife Geetha joins Cong; to campaign for brother Madhu Bangarappa
Widens Geetha’s opportunity to involve herself in social work, says Shiva Rajkumar
Bengaluru: Geetha Shivarajkumar, wife of Kannada film star Shiva Rajkumar and daughter of former Karnataka Chief Minister S Bangarappa, joined the Congress on Friday.
Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar welcomed Geetha into the party during a formal function at the KPCC office in the city and in the presence of several Congress leaders.
Geetha’s brother and Congress candidate from Sorab constituency Madhu Bangarappa, was present as was Sadhu Kokila, who is a Kannada film actor and president of the Congress Cultural Wing.
Geetha had identified herself with the JD(S) in 2014 and contested the Lok Sabha elections from Shivamogga with the JD(S) ticket, as an opponent of veteran BJP leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa.
Last week, she had begun campaigning in Sorab for her brother Madhu Bangarappa. Her campaigning for Madhu Bangarappa is expected to intensify now that Geetha has officially joined the Congress.
Actively involved in film production too, Geetha started the film production company ‘Geetha Pictures’. She has also produced several films in Kannada.
Speaking about his wife’s decision to join the Congress, Kannada actor Shiva Rajkumar told reporters that each person had his/her own ideology.
“Geetha has been working for ‘Shaktidhama’, the school in Mysuru, for a few years now, since the death of my mother. The children at the school have benefited greatly due to her efforts,” said Shiva Rajkumar and added, “Joining hands with a political party will enable us to intensify our social work too.”
He also said that he would accompany Geetha during the campaigns, as scheduled by brother-in-law Madhu Bangarappa.
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Kurla BEST bus accident: Driver was not drunk, didn't have mental illness, say police
Mumbai (PTI): Medical tests of the driver involved in the Kurla BEST bus accident, which claimed eight lives, have indicated he did not have any mental disorder and was not drunk at the time of the incident, police said on Wednesday.
The electric bus, hired on a wet-lease basis by the civic-run Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking and driven by Sanjay More, ploughed into a crowd in Mumbai's Kurla area on December 9.
The accident claimed eight lives and left more than 40 persons injured. Several vehicles were also damaged in the incident.
More (54) is in police custody for alleged reckless driving and booked on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Before the commencement of the case trial, the driver's psychological test was recently conducted at a civic hospital in Sion to confirm if he had any mental illness, a Kurla police official said.
The test report confirmed his mental condition was normal and he had no mental disorder and he was not suffering from any brain-related disease, the official said.
Also, More's blood test report revealed he was not driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident, he said.
Earlier, More claimed the bus brake failure led to the accident, but police have received a report from the regional transport office (RTO), stating the vehicle was working fine and there was no brake or any other technical failure, the official said.
BEST administration has claimed More received three days' training before he was allowed to drive the electric bus.
RTO officials suspect human error and lack of proper training for driving automatic transmission buses could be the reason behind the accident, among the most horrific involving BEST buses in recent history.
