An appeal to Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar

Sir,

It was rather amusing to read an honest statement by Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar (‘Politicians should be kept out of sports’ in SOM dated Jan. 1)

Stating that politicians should be kept out as they were dangerous to the sport, Shivakumar said it was his personal opinion and added that he had no idea as to why he, being a politician, was invited for the release of former Indian cricketer Syed Kirmani’s autobiography “Stumped: Life Behind and Beyond the Twenty-Two Yards” at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Just I checked at the website of Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association  @https://www.kslta.com/commitee

See who are all holding the office:

1. R. Ashoka : President

2. Priyank M. Kharge: Sr. Vice-President

3.  M. Lakshminarayan, IAS: Hon. Life Vice-President

4. M.B. Dyaberi IAS (retd): Vice-President.

No wonder why Indian Tennis is in such bad shape !

Will the Honourable Dy.CM ask the above worthies to quit their posts immediately and make necessary rules to keep politicians out of sports, at least in Karnataka?

– Raja Chandra, Bengaluru, 2.1.2025

Note: Former Chief Minister and External Affairs Minister, late S.M. Krishna, stood out as an exception. Even during his tenure as CM, he was often spotted wielding a racquet at the Bangalore Club, enjoying a game of tennis with his friends.

From 1999 to 2020, he served as the President of the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA), a role in which he revolutionised tennis in the State. Under his leadership, the KSLTA hosted high-profile events that not only boosted interest in the sport but also elevated Karnataka’s standing in the tennis world.

S.M. Krishna was the first President to modernise the KSLTA. The once-neglected facility, with its clay courts and dilapidated gallery, was transformed into a state-of-the-art tennis Stadium on Cubbon Road in the heart of Bengaluru, setting a benchmark for tennis infrastructure in India. —Ed

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