By John B Monteiro

Mangaluru, Apr 7: Matthew 5:5 is the fifth verse of the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament of the Bible. It is the third verse of the Sermon on the Mount, and also third of what are known as the Beatitudes.

In the King James Version of the Bible the text reads:

Blessed are the meek:
for they shall inherit the earth.
The World English Bible translates the passage as:

Blessed are the gentle,
for they shall inherit the earth.

Whatever the version of the Bible, meek or gentle, Harinath M, who was elected by the corporators as mayor of Mangaluru Municipal Corporation (MCC) in early March qualifies to inherit the mayor’s chair. But he earned it by his record of service stretching over forty years marked by meekness and gentleness. It reflects in the way he instinctively reacts to approaches to him – mostly by the meek and helpless. For instance, I mobiled him for an appointment to interview him for this article and offered to go over to his house at his convenience. But, his instant reaction was: “Please don’t take the trouble of coming here. I will go to your house at your convenience.” That is exactly what happened when he landed at my residence. But, we must start his story at the beginning.

Born on December 1, 1950, Harinath M Bondel – M standing for Mahamaya Temple in Car Street where his father, Harischandra Kalladka, lived when Harinath was born. He was the first of two sons of Harischandra and Tharamathi. His father worked as a driver in 1948/49 for the pioneering city bus service called Mangalore Automobiles owned by T B, Jogi, the other being Misquit Motors. These mid-20th century Chaverlet city buses were quarter of the size of today’s buses with a car-like bonnet. When Harinath was of school-going age, his family lived at Kadri and for his first year of school he went to the local municipal school. From this rented accommodation, Harischandra moved Bondel in 1958, where the family lives ever since - more recently in a modern cottage, adjacent to the original tiled house which was built in what was then a no-man’s land frequented by wild animals with tigers often coming to the door-steps. Even now jungle foul, peacocks and other birds come to his courtyard. As Harinath recalls, the houses in the whole of Bondel plateau area then could be counted on the fingers.

Soon after moving to Bondel, Harischandra died and Harinath’s mother, who died in 2009, managed the household from meagre income she earned through beedi rolling. The household included Harinath’s wife, Kasthuri, whom he married in 1974, and his younger brother, Divakara who had married Shakuntala, a teacher in BEM High School. Harinath himself having no issues, the joint family had his younger brother, an automobile electrician, who died in 2006, and his three daughters who, well educated, have now settled down in marriage.

Coming back to Harinath’s schooling, he studied from Class 2 to 5 in St Lawrence School in Bondel, class 6 in Mary Hill Convent and then up to 10th Class in Padua High School when he had to discontinue education for earning bread for the family. He wryly says: “At Padua they taught well but I did not learn”. He started gents tailoring with his shop, Vinaya Tailor, near Bondel junction which he continued for 30 years.

Harinath drifted into public service helping locals with their civic problems. Encouraged by Paul D’Silva, a local leader, whom he considers his initial mentor, he got involved in helping locals, specially in the Krishnanagar-Marakada areas to secure government plots and build their own houses with government subsidy. Incidentally, it cost Rs 4000/5000 to build a house then. He entered formal politics in 1974-75 by contesting for Moodshedde-Marakkada panchayat where the elections were to be held once in five years but the life of the panchayat was extended up to the next election which could be after two years of the expiry of the term. Harinath recalls that these panchayats had a limit of Rs 250 to spend on any project. Recalling his panchayat days Harinath says that not many wanted to contest panchayat election and he completed three terms until these areas were merged with Mangalore municipality in 1983.

Harinath entered the municipal corporation as corporater in 1984 representing Pacchanady ward. In 2008 he contested from Marakkada ward. In all, he contested municipal elections six times and won five times. In 1993/4, when Eunice Britto was the mayor (the first holder of the title) he was elected deputy mayor. Harinath says that people’s support at the grass-root level is his strength; but is quick to acknowledge the late Blasius D’Souza, a Karnataka minister later, for sponsoring him for a seat in the municipal election. He also credits Ramanath Rai, the present district guardian minister for mentoring him down the years of his municipal forays. As for the janatha support, he has earned it by normally spending half a day in his constituency monitoring the needs of his constituents and attending to them.

Recalling his years of campaigning for elections since 1984, initially he had to mostly walk it out (padayatra) as there were no lanes or roads. Then the lanes came and auto-ricks could be used and now these constituencies have a network of tarred roads to drive in 4-whelers. Among his initiatives was the KPT- Marakkada 4-lane concrete road – now called Circuit House- Airport Road. When Vajpayee was Prime Minister, there was provision for financing a major road project in the city and, as head of the Town Planning Committee - with JR Lobo as Commissioner- Harinath jumped at the opportunity and took the initiative for securing funding of Rs 17 crores – the marginal spill-over of expenditure over central financing was borne by MCC. When the progress of concreting was very slow in the Padavinangady-Marakkada section, Harinath spent time every day for six months at the worksite to expedite progress.

Harinath is a vegetarian and his family lives on a frugal budget – with fish cooked once a week. When he started as a corporater in 1984, corporaters used to be paid a monthly allowance of Rs 400 – which rose to Rs. 3,300 now. While the tailoring days are behind him, the family has a modest fancy-centre-type store for ready-made garments located close to his home and managed by his wife.

Now that Harinath has ascended the mayoral gaddi, he has no illusions about his new-found title. For one, the one-year term passes by before you can warm up the chair. But, Harinath is not the type to hug the mayoral chair. He has already sent clear message not to get him involved in protocol-bound unproductive functions. But, old habits die hard and already cityscape is plastered with banners announcing felicitation functions. Not a man to hurt a fly, he seems to go along not to disappoint his well-wishers.

But, he has some priorities before his term runs out. One of them is an underpass or flyover at the KPT Highway junction which is clogged by traffic most of the day. He had worked to set up ungenwadis at Marakkada, Kavoor and Mahatma Nagar Layout. He is keen to set up a market at Kavoor. He had tried to acquire for the corporation the 1.5-acre Bondel Maidan a decade ago; but the babus and netas undercut his efforts by derequisitioning the plot. Now his eyes are set on the 10-acre maidan, yet to be developed and named, which is within stone’s throw of his residence in Mahatma Nagar. It is being coveted to be turned into a gated exclusive cricket stadium. Harinath is determined to secure it for local janata by developing the plot as a multi-purpose venue for sports, athletics and as walking track for locals.

Once the current mayoral term is over, Harinath wants to call it a day for elective politics. He would continue to work for the janata and the party which had nurtured him.