Ravi Kushalappa is Kodagu ZP President
Shanteyanda Ravi Kushalappa was elected president and H.M. Cauvery vice-president (in picture above), at the elections held for the first 20-month term of the Kodagu Zilla Panchayat. Both belong to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
This is the first time that the BJP has come to power in the Kodagu Zilla Panchayat.
There are 29 seats in Kodagu Zilla Panchayat. The BJP had won 21 seats in the recent elections.
Kushalappa, who won from Makkandur in Madikeri taluk, and Cauvery, from Ammathi in Virajpet taluk, were the only candidates to have filed nomination papers for the post of president and vice-president.
The post of president was reserved for general category and the vice president was reserved for SC (woman).
Ravi Kushalappa is a close associate of Assembly Speaker K G Bopaiah. Kushalappa was Makkandur Mandala pradhan in the past. He had also served as Madikeri taluk BJP president.
EDITOR’S VIEW: Though Kodagu has emerged as a stronghold of the BJP, the district has hardly seen any development in the past few years.
The Speaker, who enjoys the confidence of Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, should use his influence to get funds for the development of the district.
If the condition of the roads in Virajpet taluk is the criterion for judging the performance of Bopaiah who represents the Virajpet Assembly constituency, the Speaker has a lot of explaining to do. It is time the Speaker concentrates on the development of Kodagu, instead of indulging in political machinations.
