Ahead of floor test of BS Yeddyurappa‘s new government in Karnataka, five Congress rebel MLAs arrived in Bengaluru on Monday morning from Mumbai. All these MLAs have been disqualified by Assembly Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar on Sunday under the anti-defection law.
All the MLAs were lodged in Mumbai’s hotel since early this month after tendering their resignation to Assembly Speaker. Among the Congress MLAs who arrived at the airport early this morning include MTB Nagaraj, ST Somashekhar, Shivaram Hebbar, Byrathi Basavraj, and Munirathnam Naidu.
While Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, who took oath on Friday, will move the confidence motion in the house later in the day to prove his majority.
In a remarkable decision on Sunday, Assembly Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar disqualified 14 more rebel legislators from state assembly till 2023, end of the term of the current assembly.
Last week, the Assembly Speaker had disqualified 3 rebels – 2 from Congress and one Independent – under the same anti-defection law.
The disqualification of 14 more rebels, 11 from Congress and 3 from Janata Dal (Secular) from the House, will further reduce the majority mark and it will be a cakewalk for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to prove its majority. With the quick turn of events and disqualification of 17 MLAs, the effective strength in 225-member assembly is now 207, leaving the Assembly Speaker. The magical majority mark in the state is 104.
BJP has currently 105 MLAs in the House and as claimed by the party it has also support from Independent lawmakers.
Keeping in mind the floor test in Karnataka State Assembly, Bangalore Police Commissioner Alok Kumar has already imposed Section 144 in 2 km radius of Vidhana Soudha from July 6 am to July 30.
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