With just days left for the Lok Sabha elections in the city, Bengaluru Central MP P.C. Mohan is ensuring he reaches out to voters in as many parts of the constituency as possible: from C.V. Raman Nagar to Gandhinagar.
He is up against the Congress’s Rizwan Arshad, whom he defeated in the last election, and a new entrant actor Prakash Raj, who is contesting as an independent.
You have won this constituency twice. Do you think you'll be third time lucky?
This time, I will win much more easily with a larger margin. In the last five years, the Central government has sanctioned ₹17,000 crore for suburban rail project, which is much needed for the city. We also got clearance to use defence land required for development projects. In 2014, we went with the scams of the UPA as a poll plank. This time, we will use my contribution to Bengaluru and the Modi government's achievements as a rallying point.
Will Prakash Raj make an impact?
My only competition is the Congress. I don't have anything more to say about this.
But the Congress and JDS have joined hands this time...
The JDS got around 20,000 votes last time. The coalition will not have an impact at all. In Karnataka, people rebelled against the Congress in the State elections. We got a higher seat share this time while that of the Congress went down.
If re-elected, what are your plans for your constituency?
I will ensure that the suburban rail project is implemented. It is expected to ferry up to 35 lakh people and bring traffic down by 25%. My other focus areas are expansion of Namma Metro to the airport, the Smart City project and lake development under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) programme.
What is your view on the proposed elevated network of corridors?
We will have to see if there are valid reasons for objection to the project. We can look at changes in the plan or a redesign. But whatever projects the State government is doing, they should put them up in the public domain. This government is trying to hide details.
