Well-known real estate developer Deepak Sakharam Kulkarni aka DSK will contest the Lok Sabha elections from the Pune constituency as a candidate of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

“If you have good social work behind you and a good reputation then money is not required to win an election. That is what I want to prove. I want to introduce ‘Obama’s change pattern’ in Pune. I will fight the election with donations from voters,” he said in an exclusive interview with Dinesh Thite. Excerpts:

Why did you decide to join politics?
I have decided to join politics due to my gut feeling. It is not a gamble. I am joining politics with honesty. Just as Barack Obama brought in change in the politics of US, I am trying to do the same here. If some good people are joining politics then at least don’t oppose them. Rather than politics I consider it as ‘samajkaran’ (social activity). I have grown up in a small house in Kasba Peth in a locality with people from all castes and communities. I used to attend public rallies at the nearby Shaniwarwada and it gave me an opportunity to get acquainted with politics since my childhood.

What do you want to achieve by joining politics?
I want to give back to the city where I grew and developed my career. The city has become a concrete jungle. Once we used to do boating in the Mutha River. Clean water used to flow in the river but now you can see there is very little water and how dirty it has become. Besides, there are numerous problems about slums. I am joining social activities to use my knowledge in the field of development and construction for last 40 years.

You are a follower of Swatantryaveer Sawarkar who was a staunch Hindutvawadi. Why then are you working for the BSP?
Sawarkar was a rationalist. He opened the Patit Pawan temple for Dalits and had food with them. I am a follower of Sawarkar, who took everybody along. BSP has undertaken social engineering in Uttar Pradesh by working for Dalits and Brahmins together. It is the only state where there is reservation on the economic basis.

How serious are you as a candidate?
I am confident of winning the election. I am 500% certain about it. I am overwhelmed by the response I am getting from young and old, rich and poor for the last few days since there has been a talk about my contesting the election.

Elections have earned a bad name as a game of money and power politics. How do you plan to deal with this?
I am a businessman and certainly not stupid to waste money in the election. I don’t believe in the premise that one needs money to fight elections. To win elections, honest votes are required and for that one has to have hearty support from the people. My wife told me that you should not take a single rupee from the company to fight the election. My friends are donating small and big amounts - from as little as Rs10 or Rs100.

Will your Brahmin supporters be able to digest your decision to join the BSP?
My joining the BSP has not been appreciated by some of senior activists of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) but I am getting good feedback by and large. I am sure as the election scenario will hot up others will also be convinced about my decision.

DNA-Daily News & Analysis Source: 3D Syndication