Hey guys..check this out...

[Raghu Nandan]

Hey guys..check this out...especially the one in highlight...see where u bugger have been staying when u come with me... a new dimension to that place now.

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: raghu <ra...@lakesys.net>
To: raghuk...@yahoo.com
Sent: Saturday, March 17, 2012 5:53 PM
Subject: Fw: check this

Raghu,

 

This is an interesting piece on the new UP CM Akilesh's liking for Karnataka and some places around, which are familiar to us too :-)) read on....

 

Warmest regards,
 
Vinod Shetty
Director.
Lake Systems Pvt Ltd.

Akhilesh Yadav is the man of the moment, the face behind the Samajwadi party’s stellar performance in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls. But, for Akhilesh it was Karnataka which made him understand the pulse of common man. Pursuing a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering at the Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering (SJCE) in Mysore, Akhilesh spent much of days like any common student despite his father being the defence minister of the country.

Recalling their student life in Mysore, his collegemate and Bangalore-based industrialist Dashrath Rai told Bangalore Mirror, “Nobody knew that he was the son of Mulayam Singh Yadav. It was only a few months before the completion of his degree that many got to know about his background.”

When Mulayam decided that his son should grow up like a common man at a faraway place, they had an option – either  Mysore and Mangalore. Finally the family chose Mysore and Akhilesh landed in the city of Palaces to pursue an engineering degree. Akhilesh, along with three other students, stayed at a rented house in Jayalkshipuram locality of Mysore.

“Except for five of us and our dean Prof Dhananjaya nobody ever knew that he was the son of Mulayam Singh Yadav. Even his house owner did not know about his background. Dressed in casuals he used to come to college on a bike and rush home as soon as classes ended. He never took part in any of the college activities as it would attract unnecessary attention. He was always conscious of his reputation as it would affect his dad’s too at the national level,” explained Rai.

It was only towards the end of his degree that Mulayam came down to Mysore to meet his son and everybody realised that Akhilesh was his son.

Though a student of technology, Akhilesh was more inclined towards nature and its conservation. Making use of his stay in Mysore to the maximum, the scion of the Samajwadi Party used to head to neighbouring national parks.

“Bandipur and Nagarahole were our favourite destinations and thrice a month we used to visit these places. He used to take photographs of landscapes and barren land than shooting animals pictures. Initially we used to set out on two-wheelers. But during one of the trips, we had to stop mid-way as we ran out of petrol. Then he decided to buy a jeep and then on used only jeeps to visit forest areas. But to the college he often came in bike.”

Akhilesh and his four close friends used to visit the coffee estate of one of the friends Amar Shetty located in Donigal in Sakaleshpur taluk of Hassan. “Trekking amidst jungle terrain of the estate was common activity.”

Though his father was a defence minister then and a powerful leader of UP, Akhilesh did not have enough money to splurge on. “He used to get only what he required. Comparatively he would spend a few hundred more than all of us. Whenever we went to hotels, the bill was shared by all of us. Every evening all of us used to meet on Kalidasa Road in Mysore and play cricket. Later on all of us would join in for snacks at a petty shop. Akhilesh used to pick up the tab. But our favourite eateries included Mylari Dosa in Nazarbad limits and Ramya Hotel. Though all of us were non-vegetarians, he would relish only vegetarian food. At any point of the day, he always had cooked rice and dal along with chapathis,” Rai said.

While his friends woke up at 9 am, Akhilesh would wake up at 5:30 am everyday and take a long walk. “He may have missed his classes, but he never ever missed his morning walks and jogging. He used to head to Kukkarahalli Lake which is 6 kms from our place. Had we stayed back in Mysore on weekends, then we would play football on the college campus. Be it our weekend outing or morning walk, he used to interact with common man understand their attitude towards politicians, governance and policies. Though he can understand Kannada very well, he could not speak and used to converse in English and Hindi only,” another roommate said.

“Once we attended a local wedding which was also attended by several VIPS. A local Zilla panchayat member went on talking about his reputation, contact and political clout. Akhilesh silently listened to him. He never ever opened his mouth about his background. He was drawn to those who were reticent and would open himself up only with them,” Rai said.

Interestingly, Akhilesh had the rare opportunity of meeting renowned Kannada film actor Vishnuvardhan along with his friends at his residence in Bangalore just a year before his death.