Media mogul Rajeev Chandrasekhar is BJP’s sole candidate from Karnataka for RS polls

coastaldigest.com news network
March 12, 2018

Two-time Independent member of the Rajya Sabha and media entrepreneur Rajeev Chandrasekhar has been announced as Bharatiya Janata Party’s sole candidate from Karnataka for March 23 biennial polls to the upper house.

Mr. Chandrasekhar won twice in 2006 and 2012, both times taking additional votes from BJP and JD(S). In 2006, he won against Kannada writer U.R. Ananthamurthy.

Active in Bengaluru’s civic activist space, he was associated with the BJP earlier too. He was made chairman of ABIDe, a think tank for Bengaluru by B.S. Yeddyurappa during his tenure. Currently he is the vice chairman of BJP-led NDA Kerala state unit

He is the founder and chairman of Jupiter Capital Pvt. Ltd, a financial services and investment company. One of Jupiter Capital's portfolio companies' AsiaNet News is also the main and largest investor of Rs 30 crore (US$4.6 million) for Republic TV.

Rajeev was born in Ahmedabad, Gujarat to Air Commodore M. K. Chandrasekhar of the Indian Air Force, and Mrs. Valli Chandrasekhar.

He studied various schools across India, and studied electrical engineering at Manipal Institute of Technology. He completed Masters in Computer Science in 1988 from Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. He then completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

In 1981, Rajeev briefly worked for Softech, a start-up IT firm. After handpicked by Vinod Dham, Rajeev worked for Intel Corporation in the United States between 1985 and 1991 as Senior Design Engineer of the team that designed and launched 32 bit 80486 microprocessor and CPU architect in the team that designed the path breaking Pentium microprocessor.

In 1994, Rajeev founded BPL Mobile. In July 2005, he sold his 64 percent stake in BPL Communications to Essar Group for US$1.1 billion.

Rajeev founded Jupiter Capital in 2005, with an initial investment of US$100 million, and currently has investments and managed assets of over US$800 million in technology, media, hospitality, and entertainment. Jupiter Entertainment Ventures Private Limited owns and operates media companies including Asianet News, Kannada Prabha and Suvarna News 24x7 and Republic TV run by Arnab Goswami. The company also owns radio brands Best FM and Radio Indigo.

Rajeev recognizes he is a Member of Parliament who also earns his income from business investments. He has put all his communication to Governments past and present on his website. For purpose of clarity, all investee companies have their Boards, Chairpersons, and Managements who are responsible for these companies, and neither Jupiter Capital nor Rajeev is responsible in any way for these companies or their operations.

In April 2013, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum, for his work as an entrepreneur.

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News Network
December 2,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 2: Mangaluru International Airport responded to a medical emergency late on Monday night. Air India Express flight IX 522, travelling from Riyadh to Thiruvananthapuram, was diverted to Mangaluru Airport after a passenger in his late 30s experienced a medical emergency on board.

The Airport’s Operations Control Centre received an alert regarding the passenger’s health condition. The airport activated its emergency response protocol, mobilising the airport medical team and coordinating with stakeholders including CISF, immigration, and customs. 

Upon landing, airport medical personnel attended to the passenger, assessed his condition, and arranged to shift him to a local tertiary-care hospital for further treatment. The passenger’s relatives accompanied the passenger, who incidentally received necessary medical care on board, which helped stabilise the situation.

Following the handling of the emergency, the flight departed for Thiruvananthapuram at 2:05 am on Tuesday.

"We appreciate the cooperation of all parties involved, and this incident reaffirms our ongoing commitment to prioritising passenger safety and readiness to respond to unforeseen emergencies with professionalism and care," the Airport spokesperson said. 

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News Network
December 5,2025

Mangaluru: In a significant step to curb online hate and intimidation, Mangaluru City Police have registered a suo motu case against multiple Instagram accounts accused of circulating alleged provocative and threatening content.

While monitoring social media activity on Tuesday, Kankanady Town PSI Anitha Nikkam identified the Instagram handle ‘team_targetttt_900’ for posting a hate message alongside images of lethal weapons. Another account, ‘team_nagara_900’, allegedly shared a threatening post targeting activist Bharath Kumdelu, tagging additional pages such as KARAVALI-OFFICIAL.

Several other accounts — including ‘immu_bhai.fan’, ‘target_boy_900’, ‘kings_of_manglore’, ‘team_target_boys.900’, ‘arshad_mangalore’, ‘target_ka19_ullal’, ‘team_target__’, ‘troll_tigersz_900’, ‘tr_group_900’, and ‘team_target_900’ — are also under scrutiny for spreading similar inflammatory material, police said.

Authorities have urged citizens, especially young social media users, to report suspicious pages and avoid engaging with groups that glorify violence or threaten individuals. Online hate can quickly escalate into real-world harm, and police stress that sharing or promoting such content can attract legal consequences.

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coastaldigest.com news network
December 2,2025

karkala.jpg

Udupi, Dec 2: A wave of regional pride is sweeping through Udupi district as Shagun S Verma Hegde, a talented Class 9 student from Christ King English Medium High School, Karkala, has been named the captain of the Indian National Team for the Under-15 Girls’ Volleyball Championship.

Shagun holds the unique distinction of being the sole player from Karnataka selected to represent the country in the prestigious international tournament. The championship, organized by the School Games Federation, is scheduled to take place in Shangluo, China, from December 3 to 13, where Shagun will lead the national squad.

A Remarkable Journey to the Top

Shagun’s selection is a testament to her dedication and exceptional skill on the court. Her journey included several rigorous rounds of selection:

•    She was the only player from Udupi district to qualify for the state-level selection camp.

•    Out of eight players from Karnataka who advanced to the national selection camp in Pune, Maharashtra, Shagun was the only one to secure a place in the final national squad.

•    The national camp saw participation from approximately 200 players, which was shortlisted to 23. Shagun not only made the final cut but was also ranked as the second-best player overall, solidifying her leadership role.

Shagun, who is the daughter of Sandesh Verma and Shruthiraj of Kallotte, Karkala, has trained under experienced coaches Santosh D’Souza, Jeevan D’Silva, Jairaj Poojary, and Ramesh. Her selection as the team captain has brought profound honour to her family, school, the Udupi district, and the entire state of Karnataka.

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