Bangalore: Ramakrishna Hegde, Karnataka’s most notorious vaidik leader and a master crook with a “socialist face”, died here on Jan. 12. One Hegde may be dead but he has given birth to hundreds of more notorious vaidik journalists, leaders and pleaders to carry on his disruptive mission.
The only chief minister of Karnataka to be dismissed for corruption (1988), he played havoc in Karnataka politics and even dabbled in “national” politics which George Fernandes cut short.
Dismissed for corruption: He was dismissed as Chief Minister in the famous telephone tapping case and our Editor, V.T. Rajshekar’s office-cum-residence telephone in Bangalore was on the top of the list of 51 telephones. It was then we wrote our Editorial of Sept.1, 1988: “Hegde: Good riddance to bad rubbish.”
The then Union Communication Minister read out in Parliament the names and numbers of the tapped phones. And within a day the head of Karnataka’s most communal and corrupt chief minister rolled down.
But to Karnataka’s Brahminical toilet papers Hegde was an “icon” and a “national leader”. This is because he was a dedicated vaidik. India’s toilet papers covered up the ugly face of every vaidik leader -be it P.V. Narasimha Rao, Jayalalita, EMS Namboodiripad.
Cause of all DV troubles: Hegde as CM filed four criminal cases against our Editor including the state’s first sedition case. When the Chandigarh police came to Bangalore to arrest our Editor (1986) under TADA, he instructed the local police to expedite his exit as early as possible. But the same Hegde defended his jatwala, B.V. Karanth, who set on fire a girl friend at Bhopal.
He even asked the local vaidik journalists to put out false reports against our Editor with a view to forcing the closure of DV itself. But nothing happened. Later, he instructed the local police to manage the impounding of our editor’s passport.
Dalit Voice, however, converted all these problems into God-sent opportunities. DV came out with flying colours but Hegde got dismissed with several judicial commissions convicting him of corruption. The Karnataka High court convicted him, and this conviction was upheld by the Supreme court.
R.K. Hegde’s predatory expeditions are too long to be listed in this short report. (DV Edit June 1, 1988: “R.K. Hegde & the blasted belief system“).
