Soft drinks vendor to donate excess compensation to the needy

Gadag: Sameer Hasansab Kala, 22, a soft drinks vendor in Laxmeshwar, who had suffered a loss of Rs 30,000 after his vehicle was mobbed by BJP workers during Amit Shah’s rally on April 28, has now decided to donate the fund of Rs 25,000 to old age home and a school for the deaf and dumb.
Kala told TOI that he got a call from a BJP leader demanding for some soft drinks for Shah’s programme. “Actually, I refused to go there as the venue was overcrowded. But the leader insisted that I get the softdrinks without fail. I went there, stopped my vehicle at a place and walked in to look for my client. When I returned, people were grabbing bottles from the vehicle, thinking that they were for free. Within no time, the whole vehicle was emptied, and I was dismayed over the loss. I started weeping there. On the same night, I got a call from Sarfaraj Suranagi, Youth Congress president in Laxmeshwar and he compensated me with Rs 20,000. The next day, Mysuru MP Pratap Simha called and enquired about the incident. Although I refused his help politely, he extended financial support of Rs 35,000. He also said since the incident occurred during the party’s event, he would pay for it,” he explained.
Kala also said, as the video of his breaking down went viral on social media, he got many calls from Bengaluru and other cities offering financial help to him. “However, I refused all offers politely and thanked them. Now I have Rs 55,000 against my loss of Rs 30,000. So, I am thinking of giving it to a local old age home and a school for dumb and deaf children school in the form of ration,” he stated.
Kala dropped out of PUC and runs a small business called Sameer Enterprises that offers door delivery services of mineral water and soft drinks. He lives with his elder brother and parents in Laxmeshwar town.