On July 20th, Star of Mysore carried a report of a press release by the Convenor of Association of Concerned and Informed Citizens of Mysore (ACICM), M. Lakshmana. The headline boldly stated: “Lakshmana to go on fast unto death in Delhi.” I assumed that Lakshmana was now taking his fight “for the people” straight to Delhi; but alas, I was disappointed and disturbed when it turned out that he was going to Delhi to ask for a Ministerial berth for a particular BJP MLA!

We all thought ACICM was a forum of “concerned” and “informed” citizens, but we did not know that suddenly its concern was a Ministerial berth. Yes, there are NGOs helping orphans, aged persons, rehabilitating sex workers and now, it seems we have a political NGO too in ACICM. The Convenor of ACICM and its members must know that by supporting the cause of one MLA, they will no longer be seen as an NGO but as mere “lobbyists.”

Personally, I was more disturbed because in 2009, April 25th to be exact, in my column titled “The Fighters Amongst Us,” I had written words extolling Lakshmana as a “man for the people”. At that point, he was. In fact, responding to people who were complaining that he was stalling Mysore's development, I had said “If you disagree with him on an issue, then you are welcome to educate him. But most of us prefer to sit in the comfort of our living room and whine.” And so now I believe that I owe it to my readers to question Lakshmana's new avatar.

It is surprising that in all these years, Lakshmana and ACICM did not find a single public cause worthy of “fast unto death.” But suddenly after 12 years of social service, he and ACICM have found a reason — sadly it is only to make an MLA from our city, our District In - charge Minister.

The irony is this. In his press statement he stated, “We will not withdraw the fast unless the leaders give us a definite assurance that H. S. Shankaralinge Gowda would get a berth during the Cabinet expansion which is expected to take place next month”. This, Mr. Lakshmana and members of ACICM, is not a call of public service, but an agenda - based holler of a lobbyist.

Now, Lakshmana wants to deprive himself of sensible nutrition to make Shankaralinge Gowda a Minister, the same MLA with whom he fought on the steps of K. R. Hospital on April 8, 2006 where he had gone to give a memorandum to Dr. V. S. Acharya, the then Medical Education Minister, stating the problems of K. R. Hospital. The Chairman of the hospital’s Visitors Board (a Board formed to discuss the problems of the hospital and provide solutions) was MLA Shankaralinge Gowda. By presenting the memorandum, Lakshmana was conveying to the Minister that the MLA was not doing his job effectively. Later, in 2008 general election, Lakshmana stood opposite Shankaralinge Gowda in the Chamaraja constituency. Now it makes us wonder why Lakshmana suddenly feels so much love for Shankaralinge Gowda.

I have known Shankaralinge Gowda since my childhood. He is a grassroots leader who has come up the hard way. That is why his constituency has elected him four times. He does not need Lakshmana, the ACICM or anybody else’s help to achieve his political goals.

Lakshmana is known for his detailed presentation when dealing with issues. When presenting a case before the government officers, he appears with numerous files and power point presentations to state facts and arrive at a rational decision. But when it comes to an issue where he is prepared to “die” along with his ACICM members, Lakshmana has no details beyond saying, “We will impress upon the national BJP leaders as to how the district has suffered a setback in achieving progress as there is no Minister from the district as the in-charge Minister.”

So does Lakshmana think that only a Minister from our district can help us? If so, we have had in - charge Ministers from our district before and we ask, how much have they done for us? Also he says, “The district has suffered a setback in progress.” Weren’t these setbacks always there?

Having a District in - charge Minister from the same district is not enough to put that district on the path of progress. We need a Minister who has the ears of the Chief Minister, the trust of the bureaucracy and the goodwill of the Police force. If the Chief Minister does not take the words of the in - charge Minister seriously, he will not be well - disposed to do work in that district. If the bureaucracy is not happy with the Minister, then everything will move at a snail's pace. And finally, if the Police does not do an honest job, then the district will always remain chaotic.

Suddenly it seems, Lakshmana and ACICM are more bothered about appeasing MLA Shankaralinge Gowda than addressing the concerns of Mysore citizens. In fact, he seems to suggest that “it is what Mysoreans want”. It is not his place to make his personal preference a public cause.

A Basic necessity is of common interest to all citizens. So anybody who fights for it is fighting for everybody’s benefit which it is acceptable and commendable.

Is Lakshmana’s recent loss in the MLC elections the reason for his sudden inclination towards politicians? Does he feel it is better to be at the service of a politician rather than the society? After all, he himself said after losing his election that he regrets for having toiled so long doing social work only to be let down by the electorate.

This frustration is understandable. It is indeed heartbreaking when people you have worked for don’t stand by you. But social service is not about expecting. It is about being selfless. If social service translated into votes, then every politician would have taken it up, changing the face of this nation for the better.

It is no concern of an NGO to interfere in the workings of a political party and push for one man’s cause. That job is best left to a lobbyist. Let us hope that Lakshmana and ACICM will drop this misdirected cause and go back to doing what they are good at — addressing public grievances and questioning the authenticity of government programmes. Simply rushing to Delhi to starve for a politician’s cause will only bring his and ACICM’s credibility down in the eyes of the public who are already questioning ACICM’s sense of purpose and existence.