BENGALURU: “I speak today as ‘probably’ the last nominated Anglo-Indian MLA in Karnataka. I say ‘probably’, as I would like to believe that the action to keep in abeyance our nomination, will be restored and we will be back to continue contributing to our country India, as we Anglo-Indians have always done,” said Vinisha Nero, who was nominated for two terms as MLA under the Anglo-Indian quota. She was speaking in the assembly on the Karnataka Budget for 2023.
“Very unfortunately, the present BJP government has dealt a crippling blow to Anglo-Indians, by keeping in abeyance our nomination to State Legislatures and the Lok Sabha since January 2020, citing untruths that there are only 296 Anglo-Indians in India, and we are a well-off community... this is far from the facts,” she regretted.
She expressed hope that her community’s political nomination will be restored, as then Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had stated that the door was not shut on them, but is still kept ajar. She urged Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai to revoke the National Overseas Scholarship of Rs 20 lakh being given to minority students, as in the budget it is being given as a loan without interest, adding that studying abroad is a big burden on parents.
She also urged that educational institutions of minorities be exempt from property tax, which was withdrawn and many schools were asked to pay up tax amounting to lakhs and crores of rupees. “This is getting passed on to the students. I request the government and chief minister to please review this,” she appealed.
“I learnt to better understand people’s problems, especially in rural areas, learnt how to prioritise basic needs from wants, contribute positively in my own small way to the various committees I served on, be it the Women and Child Committee, House Committee, Committee for Atrocities against Women and Children, the Christian Development Committee and many others. I had the opportunity to travel to 26 districts in Karnataka,” she claimed.