Mysore/Mysuru: Writer Prof. K.S. Bhagawan has appealed to the authorities concerned to handover the old Deputy Commissioner’s Office building to the University of Mysore (UoM) in keeping with the wish of former Chief Minister late Kengal Hanumanthaiah.
Recalling his meeting with Hanumanthaiah on the invitation of the latter for dinner with him during his stay at Jaladarshini Guest House in city, Prof. Bhagawan said, “I had been there for dinner and went out for a walk along with Hanumanthaiah. On coming near DC Office, which was called as ‘Attara Kacheri’ during Princely era, Hanumanthaiah said this ‘Attara Kacheri’ is out of place here. This is University premises and it is improper to have a Revenue Office here. I had thought of handing it over to the University but lost CM’s chair by then.”
Prof. Bhagawan, in a press release stated that “I remember what the former CM, described as the ‘Architect of Vidhana Soudha’ who spearheaded the cause of unification of Karnataka had told me then. There is a mention of the particular conversation in the book ‘Rajarshi Kengallara Bhashanagalu’ as an editor that saw its first print in 2006 and reprint in the year 2017.”
In this wake, Prof. Bhagawan has opined that ‘By handing over the old DC Office building to UoM, it will help in the development activities. The Government should also be generous in this regard.’
It may be mentioned that, following the recent shifting of old DC Office to new District-level Office Complex in Siddarthanagar, Deputy Commissioner Dr. K.V. Rajendra had shared his plans to convert the heritage DC Office building into a museum.
Memo to CM
Prof. Bhagawan this morning handed over a memorandum to Chief Minister Siddharamaiah, at his (CM) T.K. Layout residence seeking the transfer of old DC Office building to UoM.
Hare Bhagavan!
Kengal Hunumanthaiah,the architect of the first massive corrupt practice, just 7 years after indepndence,as the CM,awarded contracts to his friends for the construction of the Vidhana Soudha, and made himself very rich, when a large slice of that contract money went into his pocket. After the media howled corruption , he appointed an enquiry commission, whose chair was his friend again ,and this commission cleared him of any wrong doing!
Well, He was a very powerful CM, who had support from from Nehru, so much so that he simply shifted the state capitalm from Mysore to Bangalore, without any consultation, at a stroke of a written order. He could have handed this ‘Attara Kacheri’ simply over to the UOM. Why did he not do it?
The so called professors like you often talk crap. The UOM building, the Crawford Hall itself, was not suitable as a university administration building, even decades ago, when the UOM was entering into the post-independent era. So many over the years complained about its unsuitability, and wanted a modern university building with customised facilities.
The late KM Pannikar, during his short tenure as the VC ( it was rimoured that he was poisoned and killed when he wanted to clear out the professors at Manasagangothri, most of who were appointed based on their caste, and this made them to rebel), often complained about the Crawford Hall as not fit for university administration and wanted a modern building constructed for the purpose. The question of how the Crawford Hallshould be put to use,after one off grduation ceremony each year, was not answered, and the UOM offices stayed there!
Well, that being the case yhis, ‘Attara Kacheri’ , a similar type of builfdingg of the British Raj, will not be appropriate too.
Just look at another British Raj building, the Lalithamahal Palace, about which even Jayachamaraja Wadiyar, could not find a role, after his Palace officials investigated and gave up, and now sticking out as a sore and very damaged thumb!