N. Venkatachala
Encyclopedia
Nanje Gowda Venkatachala (born July 3, 1930) is retired judge of the Supreme court of India
and former Lokayukta
of state of Karnataka
. He was popular for his approach of taking action in each and every case he caught, many times red-handed by personally leading the raid while he was serving as Lokayukta. He became the first of the four Lokayuktas to take the oath of office and secrecy in Kannada language
with the Governor also administering the oath in Kannada.
in Kolar district
in a respectable agriculturist's family. After completing his schooling from Mulbagal
and Kolara he moved to Bengaluru to pursue his college education. He obtained Bachelor of Science
and Bachelor of Law degrees from Mysore University
. He is married to Anasuya.
, Hebbal
from 1963 to 1973 and Bangalore University
from 1970 to 1973. He was elected as high Court government pleader in 1968 and continued in that position till 1973 and when he was promoted to high court government advocate which he served till 1977. He was appointed as additional judge for Karnataka High Court
on 28 November, 1977 and a permanent judge on 8 September, 1978. He functioned as a tribunal for prevention of unlawful activities under the unlawful activities prevention act during the year 1990. He was appointed as the acting Chief Justice for Karnataka High Court in May, 1992. On July 1, 1992 he was sworn in as Judge of the Supreme Court of India which he remained until Jul2 2, 1995.
, the anti corruption agency. He was sworn in as the Lokayukta on July 2, 2001. He is said to have put the fear of god in the Karnataka administration. Number of complaints the office of Lokayukta was receiving dramatically increased from 20-25 per day to 200-250 per day while Venkatachala was in tenure. He personally led hundreds of raids often lashing out at corruption in political life. In his four and a half years in office, he had looked into more than 50,000 cases of misconduct and complaints from members of the public. He even drew lot of criticism often from politicians who accused him of tarnishing all politicians with the same brush. He was discontinued as Lokayukta for the second term because of legal hurdles although a huge campaign was done in favor of him. Owing to his popularity he was featured in a Kannada film
Lancha Samrajya as an officer fighting the corruption.
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
and former Lokayukta
LokAyukta
The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states.The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966...
of state of Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
. He was popular for his approach of taking action in each and every case he caught, many times red-handed by personally leading the raid while he was serving as Lokayukta. He became the first of the four Lokayuktas to take the oath of office and secrecy in Kannada language
Kannada language
Kannada or , is a language spoken in India predominantly in the state of Karnataka. Kannada, whose native speakers are called Kannadigas and number roughly 50 million, is one of the 30 most spoken languages in the world...
with the Governor also administering the oath in Kannada.
Early life
N. Venkatachala was born in Mittur village of Mulabagal talukMulbagal
Mulbagal is a town and Taluk headquarters of Mulbagal Taluk in the Kolar district in the state of Karnataka, India. It lies just off the National Highway 4.-Etymology:...
in Kolar district
Kolar district
Kolar district is a district in Karnataka state of India. The town of Kolar is the district headquarters. Kolar district is located in the southern region of the State and is the eastern-most district of the Karnataka State...
in a respectable agriculturist's family. After completing his schooling from Mulbagal
Mulbagal
Mulbagal is a town and Taluk headquarters of Mulbagal Taluk in the Kolar district in the state of Karnataka, India. It lies just off the National Highway 4.-Etymology:...
and Kolara he moved to Bengaluru to pursue his college education. He obtained Bachelor of Science
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
and Bachelor of Law degrees from Mysore University
University of Mysore
The University of Mysore , is a public university in India. The University founded during the reign of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV, the Maharaja of Mysore, and was conceptualized on the basis of a report on educational progress in the United States and Australia, submitted by Messrs Thomas Denham and...
. He is married to Anasuya.
Career
Venkatachala enrolled as an Advocate in the then High Court of Mysore on 16 November, 1955. He served as a part-time reader in Mercantile Law from 1958 to 1970 and a legal adviser to the University of Agricultural SciencesUniversity of Agricultural Sciences
University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, ', imparts Education, Research and Extension activities in field of agriculture, forestry and home science. The university was started on 1 October 1986. It is located on Dharwad-Belgaum road on a campus with space for growing trees and fields for...
, Hebbal
Hebbal
Hebbal is an area of Bangalore, India, which was once indicative of the north endpoint of the city. Though originally famous for Hebbal Lake, it is now better known for the serpentine maze of flyovers that network the Outer Ring Road and Bellary Road. The flyover spans a length of over all the...
from 1963 to 1973 and Bangalore University
Bangalore University
Bangalore University is a public university located in Bangalore, Karnataka State, India. The university is one of the oldest in India, dating back to 1886...
from 1970 to 1973. He was elected as high Court government pleader in 1968 and continued in that position till 1973 and when he was promoted to high court government advocate which he served till 1977. He was appointed as additional judge for Karnataka High Court
Karnataka High Court
The Karnataka High Court is the High Court of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located in Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka. The High Court functions out of a red brick building known as Attara Kacheri...
on 28 November, 1977 and a permanent judge on 8 September, 1978. He functioned as a tribunal for prevention of unlawful activities under the unlawful activities prevention act during the year 1990. He was appointed as the acting Chief Justice for Karnataka High Court in May, 1992. On July 1, 1992 he was sworn in as Judge of the Supreme Court of India which he remained until Jul2 2, 1995.
Lokayukta
Venkatachala is best known for rejuvenating the department of Karnataka LokAyuktaLokAyukta
The Lokayukta is an anti-corruption ombudsman organization in the Indian states.The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Morarji Desai submitted a special interim report on "Problems of Redressal of Citizen's Grievances' in 1966...
, the anti corruption agency. He was sworn in as the Lokayukta on July 2, 2001. He is said to have put the fear of god in the Karnataka administration. Number of complaints the office of Lokayukta was receiving dramatically increased from 20-25 per day to 200-250 per day while Venkatachala was in tenure. He personally led hundreds of raids often lashing out at corruption in political life. In his four and a half years in office, he had looked into more than 50,000 cases of misconduct and complaints from members of the public. He even drew lot of criticism often from politicians who accused him of tarnishing all politicians with the same brush. He was discontinued as Lokayukta for the second term because of legal hurdles although a huge campaign was done in favor of him. Owing to his popularity he was featured in a Kannada film
Cinema of Karnataka
The cinema of Karnataka , sometimes colloquially referred to as Sandalwood and as Chandanavana in Kannada, encompasses movies made in the Indian state of Karnataka based in Bangalore. Most of the movies are made in Kannada, with a handful of them in Konkani or Tulu. Today more than 100 films are...
Lancha Samrajya as an officer fighting the corruption.