Hours ahead of the state budget, Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Friday made a last-minute announcement of removing dissenting Congress Lawmaker Umesh Jadhav from the post of the chairman of the Warehouse Corporation. Lawmaker Pratap Gowda Patil will be replacing Jadhav.
While, Basanagouda Daddal, Congress MLA from Raichur has been appointed as the chairman of Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Board.
Making Karnataka’s political crises more slippery, seven MLAs of Congress and three of Bhartiya Janta Party on Thursday abstained from the Assembly’s Budget Session, fuelling speculation of defection.
“Three of BJP MLAs too abstained from the Session on Thursday,” said sources, which has prompted the BJP to initiate the exercise to keep its flock of MLAs intact. Sources did not disclose the name of these three MLAs.
Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy also released an audio clip of a conversation allegedly between BJP State Chief BS Yeddyurappa and JDS MLA Naganagowda Kandkur’s son Sharana where BS Yeddyurappa made offer Rs 25 cr and ministerial post for his father.
Correction: Karnataka CM HD Kumaraswamy releases audio clip of a conversation allegedly between BJP State Chief BS Yeddyurappa and JDS MLA Naganagowda Kandkur's son Sharana where Yeddyurappa made offer Rs 25 cr and ministerial post for his father (original tweet will be deleted) https://t.co/XSluLNQ7Hy
— ANI (@ANI) February 8, 2019
Meanwhile, Congress who had called a legislature Party meeting had decided to initiate action against four party rebel MLAs under the Anti-Defection Law, CLP leader Siddaramaiah said told after the meeting.
Briefing reporters after the CLP meet, Siddaramaiah said he would meet the Assembly Speaker Ramesh Kumar and urge him to take action against Ramesh Jarkiholi, Umesh Jadhav, Mahesh Kumathali and B Nagendra.
Congress leader Siddaramaiah: Will petition before the assembly speaker to suspend the four dissenting Congress MLAs. #Karnataka pic.twitter.com/PZNpDkMmBX
— ANI (@ANI) February 8, 2019
Congress Leader SG Siddharamaiah who is also a Chairman of Coordination Committee of JD(S) and Congress told apart from 4 MLAs and JN Ganesh, all other lawmakers attended the CLP meeting. Two Lawmakers Roshan Baig and BC Patil, who also did not participate, had taken prior permission, he added.
JN Ganesh is declared absconding after an alleged brawl with a lawmaker colleague at a resort recently. Former Chief Minister SG Siddaramaiah said the four MLAs had sent letters to him, saying they could not attend the entire budget session of the assembly.
“It is the unanimous decision of the CLP that I should go ahead with further action against them under the Anti-Defection Law,” Siddaramaiah said.
Siddharamaih on Thursday on Thursday alleged on the second day of the session that BJP
was offering more than Rs 30 crore to some of their MLAs. “I got evidence to reveal that but will release the evidence at an appropriate time,” he said.
Despite Congress issued a whip ahead of Budget Session and directed all its Lawmakers to present in the Assembly, 7 Lawmakers abstained from Budget Session.
The Congress MLAs who have abstained from the Assembly’s Budget Session are Ramesh Jarkiholi, Mahesh Kumathalli, Dr. Umesh Jadhav, Dr. Sudhakar, BC Patil, Nagendra B, and JN Ganesh. Sources said that Nagendra B, Ramesh Jarkiholi, Umesh Jadhav and Mahesh Kumathalli are said to be in touch with the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP).
In a Cabinet Reshuffle and Expansion in December, the two ministers have been dropped from the cabinet. The Two Ministers includes Municipal Administration Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi and Forest Minister R Shankar. Jarkiholi has been allegedly socializing with BJP leaders, so he was replaced by his brother Satish Jarkiholi. Shankar, on the other hand, was be replaced by CS Shivali.
Earlier on the very first day of Budget Session on Wednesday, Echoes, Uproars, and Chaos hit the Karnataka Assembly as Opposition Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) Lawmakers in the assembly shouted Slogans against JD(S)–Congress Coalition Government during Governor’s address on the first day of Budget Session.
However, It is not cleared that Bhartiya Janta Party will move a No-Confidence motion in the assembly or they will meet Governor Vajubhai Wala to request him to disqualify the Coalition Government in the state.
The Congress-JD(S) together has 117 MLAs in Karnataka Assembly with Congress 80 and the JDS 37, while BJP has 104 in the 224-member Assembly. The halfway mark is 113. Since the Congress-JDS jointly formed the government in Karnataka in May last year, there have been murmurs of resentment among them.
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