BELGAUM: Former Union minister and veteran Congressman B Shankaranand was the first politician to construct his own 'samadhi' in 2001, beside that of his wife Kamaladevi at Kanagala village.
He built two more samadhis adjacent to that for his father Baburao and mother Ambika.
Shankaranand named the samadhi venue 'Samata Punya Bhumi' and used to visit the place once or twice a year. He is said to have asked his relatives to bury him near his wife. Shankaranand's house was once considered a 'power centre' from where many developments were controlled.
There was an unwritten law that Congress leaders who visited Belgaum had to go to Shankaranand's house first for his blessings. As he was very close to the Gandhi family, the Congress leaders were 'scared' of him and at the same time he was respected by all. Shankaranand, who had headed the Parliamentary panel to probe the allegations of kickbacks in the Bofors gun deal, was instrumental in making many leaders ministers and retired politicians governors.
He represented Chikkodi Parliamentary constituency seven times, which was a Guinness Book record. He was defeated by green horn Ratnamala Savanur in 1996.
Again in the 1998 elections, he was humbled by Ramesh Jigajinagi and since then he was sidelined in politics.