R. Roshan Baig

Summary

R. Roshan Baig is a former seven-time member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and Minister from South Indian state of Karnataka. He has also been vice-chairman of the Al-Ameen Educational Society. A seven-time MLA, from 1984 to 1994 he was the member of the Janata Party for the first two terms as the MLA and from 1994 to 2019 he was the member of the Indian National Congress for 5 of his MLA terms.[1] Baig was suspended from the Indian National Congress in 2019 after he insulted top Congress leaders for the party's poor performance in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Roshan Baig had held former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's "arrogance" and Dinesh Gundu Rao's "immaturity" responsible for the "flop show".[2] He was also blamed for praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiatives for inclusive development.

R. Roshan Baig
Minister of Home Affairs
In office
June 1996 – August 1999
Minister for Urban Development, Minister for Infrastructure, Minister for Haj
In office
01 January 2014 – 30 May 2018
ConstituencyShivajinagar
MLA of Karnataka Legislative Assembly
In office
2008 - 2019
Preceded byKatta Subramanya Naidu
Succeeded byArshad Rizwan
ConstituencyShivajinagar
In office
1999-2008
Preceded byR. Krishnappa
Succeeded bySeat disestablished
ConstituencyJayamahal
In office
1994-1999
Preceded byA. K. Anatha Krishna
Succeeded byKatta Subramanya Naidu
ConstituencyShivajinagar
In office
1985-1989
Preceded byM. Raghupathy
Succeeded byA. K. Anatha Krishna
ConstituencyShivajinagar
Personal details
Born (1951-07-15) 15 July 1951 (age 72)
Bangalore, Mysore State, India
Political partyIndian National Congress, Janata Party
SpouseSabiha Fatima
Children3
Websitehttp://rroshanbaig.com/

He was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly for a record seven-times from Shivajinagar Assembly Constituency and Shivajinagar was touted as his bastion for over 4 decades.

Early life edit

Baig was born premature and had health problems as a child. He had poor attendance and failed his 8th standard exam. Ultimately, he passed high school and was admitted to RC College in Bangalore, where he contested his first election, for the post of General Secretary against Nagathihalli Chandrashekhar. After earning a bachelor's degree in commerce,[3][4] he studied for his L.L.B. at a government law college.[4]

Political career edit

Abdul Samad Siddiqui got him into politics in Janta party. He won the 1985 state elections for the 8th Assembly[3] with the Janata Party.[4] After the division of that party, he moved to the Indian National Congress party.

As a prominent face in Bangalore Central and Bangalore North, he's touted as the face of Muslim community in Karnataka. He was an MLA from Shivajinagar which is a Muslim majority constituency with a substantial Hindu population.

Baig claims 99% attendance to the assembly.[4]

Posts held edit

  • Minister of State for Home (Independent Charge)
  • Minister for Tourism and Haj[5]
  • Minister for Medium & Small Scale Industries
  • Minister for Infrastructure
  • Minister for Information, Public Relations and Haj
  • Minister For Urban Development, City Corporations, Urban Land Transport KUWSDB & KUIDFC, Haj Information & Wakf
  • Member of the 8th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th Karnataka Legislative Assembly[3][4][6]

Controversies edit

In 2012 The Hindu published news about forgery case against him, in a property deal. He was later cleared of his charges.[7]

In 2004, Baig had to resign as minister following his brother Rehan’s alleged involvement in the multi-crore fake stamp paper scandal.

The complaint against Baig is that in 2006 he bought a 1.1-acre plot in Begur Hobli, on the outskirts of Bangalore, from Keonics for a paltry sum on the pretext that he wanted to start a small-scale industry. He, however entered into a joint development agreement with Prestige Group for the construction of a commercial complex.[8]

Suspension from Indian National Congress edit

The Congress Party suspended Roshan Baig on 18 June 2019, on account of what it termed "anti-party activities" after he insulted top Congress leaders for the party's poor performance in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Roshan Baig had held former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's "arrogance" and Dinesh Gundu Rao's "immaturity" responsible for the "flop show".[9] Dinesh Gundu Rao who was embroiled in a bitter feud with Baig had also drawn the party's attention to Baig's entanglement in the events surrounding I Monetary Advisory.[9]

Honors edit

Recently he has been honored with the life membership of the International Film And Television Club of Asian Academy of Film & Television.

References edit

  1. ^ "Tracking Shivajinagar MLA, Minister Roshan Baig |". Citizen Matters, Bengaluru. 5 May 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
  2. ^ "Congress suspends Karnataka leader Roshan Baig for anti-party activities". India Today. Ist.
  3. ^ a b c "About Baig". Retrieved 21 December 2012.
  4. ^ a b c d e ND Shiva Kumar (26 July 2010). "Public Office, Private Life". Times of India. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
  5. ^ "A Week In The Life Of Roshan Baig". Times of India. 19 March 2001. Retrieved 21 December 2012.
  6. ^ "The 15 MLAs who brought down Kumaraswamy government". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  7. ^ "Dayanand Pai, Roshan Baig facing charge of forgery in a property deal". The Hindu. 18 October 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  8. ^ "Know your new ministers". Deccan Herald. 2 January 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Congress suspends Karnataka leader Roshan Baig for anti-party activities". India Today. Retrieved 18 June 2019.