Bangalore:
When Bangalore votes for the national elections, its choices will include Nandan Nilekani, the technology entrepreneur and co-founder of software giant Infosys. Mr Nilekani, who was tapped by the government to run its ambitious identity-recognition programme, is running for Bangalore South as a Congress candidate.
In an exclusive interview to NDTV, Mr Nilekani spells out his vision and how he plans to contest election. Here are the highlights:
- I think politics is the biggest lever of change in India
- When you propose new things your political legitimacy will be questioned and that is why I have to contest Lok Sabha polls
- Underestimated the pace of India. There has been such an astonishing change - the rise of young India, people wanting better governance
- As a technocrat I had reached the glass-ceiling of change I could initiate
- I'm going to win these elections
- I have done a lot of work even though I was named the candidate officially yesterday
- People want performers in politics today, people in Bangalore want a change
- Narayana Murthy has been a mentor for me - I owe a lot to him and my whole professional career was under his leadership
- Congress is my ideological home, I come from a Nehruvian family
- I don't decide my politics based on the flavour of the month
- It's the Congress party and the UPA government which let me do the Aadhaar project and backed me to the hilt
- The Congress party has been very good to me and I am grateful to them for giving me the ticket
- When I went to visit the mosque, they asked me to put on a skull-cap and I think it was a courtesy
- I come from a belief every Indian deserves a fair chance and equal respect
- When I moved from Infosys to government, I severed all ties with Infosys
- Similarly I'm very careful about mixing business with politics
- I would pay attention to campaign reform and election funding reform
- In the last few weeks, I've been meeting all the Congress people in Bangalore and I am getting a very positive response from them
- In the next few weeks, one has to focus relentlessly on execution
- You have to have a very clear strategy on how to reach voters
- I'm approaching it as engineering project - it may look more corporate and technocratic way... but that is who I am
- This is more tiring that roadshows I've done when I was in Infosys
- If I had tried to transition from Infosys to politics, I would have found it extr
- Any reform process, certainly if the scale we are trying ( with Adhaar) is going to have some perturbations
- A lot more IIT-ians in government now... no longer a Stephen's monopoly
- Arvind's contribution to political change is great
- Hats off to AAP and his team for political innovations but governance is not his cup of tea
- When you come from an agitational DNA, it is difficult
- As a force of change, they have done a great job
- I find Rahul Gandhi very idealistic and committed to change
- I would like to be a part of change. All I can say is that he has the right goals
If he is the boss, he is the boss - I have very limited focus...Six weeks and an election to win is all I am thinking about
- I have always been a team player. I will be a team player in politics
- I am a beneficiary of India's growth and success. I have benefited hugely from this country and I really don't have any personal needs - don't need to make money
- I'm in politics to make the lives of millions of Indians better
- I'm now investing my time in politics and I am in this for the long haul
- We have a programme called "Ideas for Bengaluru" and we have a huge number of ideas.
- I'm a problem solving kind of guy and I will solve problems
- I decided to join politics 6-8 months back. Initially, my family was a bit apprehensive - my kids are neutral and my wife now is my largest campaign supporter