Straws in the mind

You can’t shoe away the problem
There is a saying, good shoes take you to good places. But Congress MLA Prasad Abbayya was in the wrong place with his good shoes! Obsessed with his new leather shoes, he initially refused to  step into a flooded street at Aralikatti Oni in Hubballi on Sunday to inspect the rain havoc.  Rain that lashed for more than three hours in Hubballi flooded several houses in the area. When Abbayya arrived at the area he realised that he could not make a splash with his shoes in the water-logged street. His gunman was happy to help him and carried his shoes to the car. And after the locals provided him with a different pair of footwear, the MLA agreed to go there. The MLA, however, is crying hoarse that he was never obsessed with his shoes and was concerned about the rain-hit people.

When commissioner of police was ragged
Khadak, strict, iron fist are some adjectives people who know the new commissioner of Bengaluru city, Alok Kumar IPS, will use to describe him. But did you know that as a student, the now daring IPS officer, was ragged so much that he quit his college? At a premier institute in Bihar when he enrolled for a degree course, Alok Kumar’s seniors ragged the now top cop every evening after college. Having run out of patience with the incessant ragging that lasted all year, Kumar put his foot down and chose to walk out of the college. It was after this that he enrolled in a top college in New Delhi and the rest of it, as they say, is history. Imagine what his then seniors must feel like now to realise that the boy they bullied and ragged is now the Commissioner of Police Bengaluru!

Friendly foes’ jugalbandi
The bonhomie between Mysuru-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha and Chamundeshwari MLA G T Deve Gowda on Sunday would have none believe that the same two men were at each other’s throats just a couple of months ago during the Lok Sabha polls. The BJP MP and the JDS minister not just travelled in the same vehicle and inaugurated developmental works, they even kept each other company at a luncheon. Interestingly, Pratap Simha had polled more than a lakh votes in Gowda’s constituency of Chamundeshwari ultimately beating JDS-Congress coalition candidate in the seat. Let’s just call it politics then? Rivals one day, friends another?

Money, saar, money!
One prominent politician who had to face serious allegations received a call from a television channel. They comforted him by agreeing that some of the allegations were totally unsubstantiated and some even malicious. As the politician gratefully broke into a litany of thanks, the man at the other end said but it would cost you some money. He said we will take care of you and went on to spell out a deal for a few crores. The politician broke into a cold sweat before hanging up the phone.