Baig vs Katta: Clash of the titans

Bengaluru: There are many places in the city which boast of famous relics of the British era and one of them is Shivajinagar, which houses the Cantonment area and the famous Russell Market. Not surprisingly, Shivajinagar constituency has all basic infrastructure facilities like transport, well laid roads, water supply and drainage and has no major  shortcomings except for the fact that it has not seen as much development as expected.

Residents say that the constituency could have become a model for others owing to the infrastructure advantage it enjoys. For instance, the Cantonment area has better railway and bus connectivity to different parts of the city as the major bus station in the city after the Majestic bus terminus is Shivajinagar bus station from where bus services are available to  each and every part of Bengaluru. A major transport hub, bustling commercial complexes and a location advantage- it is right in the heart of the city- have ensured that Shivajinagar is teeming with people and activity all the time.

Some of the major areas that  are part of the constituency are Vasant Nagar, High Grounds and Ulsoor. One of the city’s major shopping spots, Commercial Street, is situated here and has many shopping centres which  always have on their shelves the latest varieties of goods and the trend-setters. There are also prestigious educational institutions in the area including Mount Carmel College and the Jain group of institutions. And when it comes to people, Shivajinagar  has a cosmopolitan population.

One of the major heritage structures in the area is St. Mary's Basilica which attracts lakhs of devotees from across the state including expats during the famous St. Mary's feast. The famous Russell Market, built by the British in 1927, is a model for market planners with its beautiful facade and attracts thousands of shoppers every day. When it was built a century ago, the main purpose was to meet the needs of British residents in the Cantonment area. The market is now maintained by the BBMP.

Coming to the political action, the constituency is set to witness a fierce battle between incumbent MLA and Infrastructure minister R. Roshan Baig of the Congress and two- time MLA from the same constituency and former minister Katta Subramanya Naidu, who later shifted to Hebbal from where he won.

What distinguishes the  constituency compared to other places in the city is the huge Muslim population which is the deciding factor in determining the fate of any candidate. It’s obviously going to the clash of the titans and Shivajinagar will demand its pound of flesh before plumping for any candidate.