Karnataka BJP president B S Yeddyurappa (Source: REUTERS)
Government formation exercise in Karnataka is yet to take off as the state BJP looked to the central leadership for its go-ahead to stake claim to provide an alternative after the collapse of the Congress-JDS coalition ministry in a confidence vote
After the Opposition BJP in Karnataka won the confidence motion moved by Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy by six votes on Tuesday, state BJP chief BS Yeddyurappa is expected to meet the Governor Vajubhai Vala after consulting the party’s central leaders today.
“I’m awaiting instructions from Delhi. I can call legislature party meeting any time and go to Raj Bhavan (to stake claim). I’m waiting for it,” Yeddyurappa, 76, who masterminded attempts to topple the coalition, told reporters after meeting RSS leaders at its state headquarters “Keshava Krupa” in Bengaluru.
“The BJP is a natural claimant with the majority on its side in the House of which the strength is reduced now. We will be looking to take the responsibility and we will be following the directions of our national president and parliamentary board,” said P Muralidhar Rao, BJP general secretary in-charge of Karnataka.
Read | BJP says natural claimant to power
The Congress-JDS government in Karnataka collapsed after it lost the confidence vote, garnering 99 votes against the 105 to the BJP in the Karnataka assembly, ending the nearly three-week-long high political drama in the state.
H D Kumaraswamy walks out of the Karnataka Assembly after the Congress-JD(S) government lost trust vote in the on Tuesday.
A number of political parties on Wednesday hit out at the BJP after the fall of the Congress-JDS government in Karnataka and accused the ruling party at the Centre of indulging in "brazen horse-trading" and "misusing power". Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati said the day will go down in the history of democracy as a "black chapter".
CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury has alleged that "brazen horse-trading" and "misuse of power" by the BJP has led to the collapse of the Congress-JD(S) coalition government.
Hours after the fall of the Congress-JD(S) government in Karnataka, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had said the greed of those who saw the alliance as an obstacle in their path to power won, while democracy and the state's people lost.
(PTI)
The Bengaluru police has cut short the 36-hour liquor ban in the city from Tuesday 6 pm, imposed amid the political turmoil in the State, and lifted it
Wednesday evening.
Two Karnataka Independent MLAs on Wednesday urged the Supreme Court to allow them to withdraw their plea seeking its direction to the state assembly Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar to conduct "forthwith" floor test on a trust motion moved by the H D Kumaraswamy government.
The Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka headed by Chief Minister Kumaraswamy collapsed on Tuesday with 99 members voting for the motion and 105 against it in a House of 225 members, including the Speaker and a nominated member. The counsel for the lawmakers — R Shankar and H Nagesh — told a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi that the MLAs wanted to withdraw the petition as the floor test has been conducted.
Karnataka Caretaker Chief Minsiter HD Kumaraswamy met officials today and thanked them for support.
Outgoing Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, " When I took oath, my government decided to waive off farmer loans. We planned to bring in the Debt Relief Act. I wanted to bring such an act and help landless labourers and small farmers. We sent the proposal to the President for approval. He has now signed it, I thank him. "
Bengaluru City Police (BCP) has clarified that section 144 imposed on Tuesday is "still in place and is not revoked." The police, however, confirmed that the ban on the sale of liquor has been withdrawn and pubs, bars and liquor shops can resume operating from 6 PM on Wednesday.
"There were 2 orders yesterday. One for liquor prohibition and second for imposing section 144 CRPC prohibitory order. Only liquor prohibition order is withdrawn. The prohibitory order is not withdrawn," a BCP spokesperson told Indianexpress.com
A day after the coalition government headed by him collapsed, outgoing Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Wednesday remained non-committal on the future of his party JDS' alliance with the Congress, saying both parties have not yet discussed it.
"Today we have called our MLAs to work out future strategies. Our top priority is to develop our party, to get the confidence of the people of Karnataka and how to move ahead at this juncture. We will discuss," Kumaraswamy told reporters ahead of the JD(S) meeting at the party office here.
Responding to a question on continuing alliance with the Congress, he said, "Let us see...I don't know. I don't know about the stand of Congress leaders for the future... we have not discussed anything yet."
(PTI)
N Mahesh, Karnataka MLA who was expelled by BSP for abstaining from floor test, said "party incharge Ashok Siddharth told me to abstain from voting. Be neutral and not support any party. That was the instruction given to me. Accordingly, I was absent. I haven't violated Behen ji's order."
Former Prime Minister and JD(S) leader Deve Gowda said, "The way in which things have happened in Karnataka, I have never seen in my political career. The way in which a national party, BJP leadership allowed this type of horse trading, I have never seen in my life."
As the Congress-JD(S) alliance collapsed in Karnataka, what is the status check of all the Opposition leaders who were present at the swearing-in ceremony of Kumaraswamy turning it into an Opposition show of strength fourteen months ago. Read here
After its coalition government with the JD(S) in Karnataka collapsed, the Congress on Tuesday accused the BJP of carrying out "one of the most heinous" horse-trading the country has ever seen and said it will hold nationwide protests against the "immoral political destabilisation".
Karnataka Congress leaders meeting underway in Bengaluru following the defeat of Congress-JD(S) government during the trust vote in Assembly, yesterday. pic.twitter.com/xiZykRDO4s
— ANI (@ANI) July 24, 2019
<script async
BSP president Mayawati on Wednesday said the manner in which the JD(S)-Congress government in Karnataka has been pulled down will go down in the history of democracy as a "black chapter".
Mayawati, who on Tuesday night expelled its lone party MLA in Karnataka hours after Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy lost the trust vote in the state assembly, said in a tweet, "The manner in which BJP kept all constitutional norms aside and used money and power to pull down Opposition-led government in Karnataka will be registered in the history of democracy as a black chapter."
"Any amount of condemnation of such an act is not enough," Mayawati said.
CM candidate BS Yeddyurappa met RSS leaders at the Chamrajpet office in Bengaluru.
Meanwhile, in the Parliament, The Right to Information (Amendment) Bill, 2019 which was passed on Monday evening in the Lok Sabha will be taken up for discussion in the Rajya Sabha today. The Bill came under fire as several Opposition parties insisted that the amendments to the law were “dangerous” to the fundamental rights of the citizens and a “threat to the Constitution and the Parliament”. Follow LIVE Updates
Only three chief ministers — all from the Congress — have been able to complete their full five-year term in the history of Karnataka, which saw the H D Kumaraswamy-led coalition government losing the confidence motion in the Assembly on Tuesday after just 14 months in power. S Nijalingappa (1962-68), D Devaraja Urs (1972-77) and Siddaramaiah (2013-2018) were the chief ministers who had completed their full term.
In an interview with Indian Express, P Muralidhar Rao, BJP general secretary in-charge of Karnataka said, CM candidate will be decided by the parliamentary board. We have BS Yeddyurappa as leader of our party and we had sought mandate under his leadership. Taking all factors into consideration, the leadership will take a decision. Read the full interview
Two Independent Karnataka MLAs sought withdrawal of their plea from the Supreme Court in which they asked for immediate voting on trust vote. The Supreme Court said it will pass an order in presence of senior lawyers representing lawmakers and K'taka assembly speaker.
As the BJP is expected to stake claim to form the next government in Karnataka, its legislature party meeting would be held on Wednesday.
According to party sources, the meeting is likely to begin at 11.30 AM to decide the next step. The party may approach Governor Vajubhai Vala on Thursday and stake claim to form the government, they said.
The rebel MLAs have decided to not return to Bengaluru. "There are no immediate plans to return to Bengaluru. We will stay here for some more time," rebel JD(S) MLA from Hunsur A H Vishwanath was quoted as saying by PTI.
He, however, refused to comment on a query whether the disgruntled legislators were waiting for the BJP government to come to power.
The spotlight is back on the BJP in Karnataka after the party defeated the Congress-JD(S) coalition led by H D Kumaraswamy by six voted in the assembly on Tuesday.
Although the H D Kumaraswamy-led JD(S)-Congress coalition government in Karnataka has fallen after losing the confidence vote, the sword of disqualification still hangs on the heads on the 13 rebel legislators. Congress leaders were confident that they would be disqualified in a day or two, which would ensure that none of them could become a minister in the new government. Sources said the party was keenly watching the BJP’s next move before deciding its next course of action.
Meanwhile, the BJP legislature party will meet Wednesday before its MLAs go to Governor Vajubhai Vala to stake claim. Yeddyurappa is expected to come to Delhi after meeting the Governor to hold discussions with top leaders of the party