M. P. Jayaraj

M. P. Jayaraj or popularly known locally as just Jayaraj was the first underworld don of Bangalore.

Biography

Jayaraj was from a poor family background. He was brought into forefront of Bangalore underworld by M. D. Nataraj, the then son in law of the Chief Minister of Karnataka Sri Devaraj Urs. Legend has it that Devaraj Urs was so impressed from the selection of his son-in-law, that the only question he asked him was what caste he belonged to and when he got the answer, jayraj was made president of the "Indira Brigade"- the youth wing of Congress party.

During the 1970's the politics in Karnataka was undergoing an immense change, the backward classes were emerging to the forefront in all the spheres of like and so was in politics led by Devaraj Urs. Devaraj Urs was a great visionary and helped the backward classes and dalits through is government programmes and as always there was opposition to these programmes by the froward caste people. To quell this opposition for the upliftment of poor and backward classess , Mr Devaraj Urs used both legal and illegal means, and one of the illegal means was the use of the underworld to quell the protestors and creat fear in them.

M.P.Jayaraj ruled the Bangalore underworld throughout the 1970s under the patronage of M. D. Nataraj, but after he was sentenced for 10 years in jail for assaulting a person in court premises, his hold on the underworld began to loosen, while he was in jail Devaraj Urs passed away, when he came out of it Bangalore was taken over by the new dons Kothwal Ramachandra and Oil Kumar. In the ensuing struggle to reign over bangalore, Kothwal Ramachandra was bumped off by Jayaraj. But the use of guns for the first time in Bangalore by another emerging criminal Muthappa Rai signalled the end of both Jyaraj and oil kumar. Though Don Oil Kumar put up a massive fight, it ended in betrayal.

Links

* [http://www.rediff.com/movies/2007/oct/22aad.htm Vijayasarathy, R. G. (October 22, 2007). "Aa Dinagalu is worth a watch". Rediff.com]
* [http://www.deccanherald.com/Content/Oct222007/scroll2007102231769.asp?section=updatenews Yes Vee. "This Dinagalu is a damp squib". Deccan Herald]