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Congress woman elected Bengaluru Mayor after BJP walkout (Lead)
Bengaluru, Sep 28 (IANS) Congress woman corporator Gangambike Mallikarjun was on Friday elected Mayor of the Bengaluru’s municipal corporation after the BJP walked out of the civic poll, said an official.
Gangambike was declared elected as Bengaluru’s 52nd Mayor by 130 votes, which is the required majority, Regional Commissioner Shivayogi Kalasad said.
Her opponent was the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Shobha Anjanappa but the party’s corporators did not take part in the election.
Gangambike, 40, represents the upscale Jayananagar ward and Shobha is from Padmanabhanagar ward in the city’s southern suburb.
Bengaluru, a city of 11 million people, is India’s IT capital.
“I am grateful to all those who voted for me and thank the party leaders for believing in me. I look forward to taking up the city’s responsibility. Tackling garbage crisis is my priority,” the beaming Mayor told reporters.
Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) woman corporator Ramila Umashankar from Kaveripura ward in the western suburb was elected the Deputy Mayor.
She defeated BJP’s Pratibha Dhanraj from Nayandahalli ward in the southwest suburb.
Even though the BJP has more corporators (100) in the 198 civic wards across the city, a pre-poll alliance between the ruling Congress and the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) in the corporation denied it the coveted mayoral post for a second consecutive year.
Of the 198 corporators in the greater civic body, the BJP has 100, Congress 75 and JD-S 15 and there are eight independents.
In addition to 198 corporators, 5 Lok Sabha members and 9 from the Rajya Sabha and 28 of the Assembly and 19 of the Council in the state legislature representing the city constitute the 259-member electorate for the mayoral election every year.
Alleging that the Congress and JD-S alliance had “hijacked” some of the independents who offered support to the BJP, its legislators and corporators staged a protest walkout ahead of the voting.
“We had independents supporting us but the Congress and JD-S hijacked them. We did not want to be a part of an illegal election, as the polling officials were also supporting the ruling alliance,” alleged BJP legislator R. Ashoka.
Refuting the allegation, Congress state unit President Dinesh Gundu Rao told reporters that it was the BJP which “kidnapped” the independents to win the mayoral election with money and muscle power, which was evident on the floor of the house ahead of the polling.
“We won the mayoral election because all our members stuck together and had the support of the independents,” Rao claimed.
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.