His entry into the Legislative Council is considered a shot in the arm for Kodagu

Nanaiah is entering the Council for the fifth time

He was a Minister in the J.H. Patel Cabinet

Madikeri:

It might not be a familiar story for Meriyanda Chengappa Nanaiah, popularly called as MCN, to re-enter the Legislative Council, as is for the people of Kodagu. Even a bete noire of Mr. Nanaiah would agree that he is a political asset to the district. Mr. Nanaiah’s presence in the Upper House is sure to lend an aura of dignity, thanks to his political astuteness and sagacity, many feel.

Mr. Nanaiah is entering the Council for the fifth time. His maiden entry was in the year 1985 when he represented the Kranti Ranga. It stood for just one year before he re-entered as a full fledged member in 1986 as member of the Janata Party. His stint in the Council from 1989 to 1994 saw a glib-tongued Nanaiah emerge as a powerful politician. He became a Minister by virtue of being the MLC from 1994 to 1999 in the J.H. Patel Government. The new assignment as Janata Dal (Secular) candidate has just begun. “My best moment in life was getting elected as the Leader of Opposition in the Council in 1989,” Mr. Nanaiah said. He continued in that post till 1994.

Mr. Nanaiah recalled that his worst moment was tendering resignation as Law Minister. He was pained at the developments that took place after the late Chief Minister J.H. Patel parted ways and aligned with the National Democratic Alliance Government, he stated. Mr. Nanaiah has his roots in the cooperative field, which had catapulted him to politics. He was elected president of the Cardamom Cooperative Society here in 1962, which was then a powerful body in Kodagu.

His first taste of election came in the year 1967 when he contested and lost as an independent against the former Minister the late A.P. Appanna, who was the Congress candidate from Madikeri constituency. “Though I had a leaning towards the Left parties, I did not associate with them,” Mr. Nanaiah said. He said that he was a great fan of the late Devaraj Urs. He contested as Congress candidate from Madikeri in 1978, defeating A.K.Subbaiah, another firebrand politician. Subsequently, he became a Minister, albeit for a short period.

Before that Mr. Nanaiah had served as president of the Madikeri City Municipal Council (then a town municipal council) from 1970 to 1974.

His stint as an advocate, both handling civil and criminal cases, continued undisturbed in between. He was chairman of the Karnataka State Cooperative Marketing Federation in 1980. Mr. Nanaiah went on to win national award for his contributions to the cooperative field.

Mr. Nanaiah’s tenure as the Kodagu district in-charge from 1994-99, saw a spurt in development activities in the district. His political clout and proximity to the late J.H. Patel stood him in good stead in the party. Now, political hibernation for Mr. Nanaiah is over and he is back in politics. “Nanaiah will act as voice of Kodagu district”, said Matanda C. Monnappa, president of the Akhila Kodava Samaja, Virajpet.

“We needed a seasoned campaigner such as Nanaiah to speak on behalf of Kodagu,” said Muneer Ahmad, councillor of the Madikeri CMC. Indeed, Mr. Nanaiah has come out of nearly eight years of ‘political wilderness.”

Mr. Nanaiah told The Hindu that the Janata Dal (Secular) base has been eroded due to the ego clash of party leaders. It had lost because it could not gear up its machineries to face elections. He exudes confidence, saying there is sufficient political space for the party to grow in the State.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Karnataka / by Jeevan Chinnappa / June 27th, 2008