Siddaramaiah: BSY alone to blame for crisis

Bengaluru: Slamming the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party for orchestrating defections from his party, Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah on Tuesday dared BJP leaders to openly accept that they were behind Operation Lotus and if not,  declare that those who have left the Congress and aligned with them will not be made ministers.

Participating in the debate on the confidence motion in the Assembly, Mr Siddaramaiah charged that the BJP is behind the instability which has hit the state government.

“It is they (BJP)  who took our MLAs away in chartered flights. We have seen in videos who accompanied whom. We have heard audios on many occasions. Mr Yeddyurappa himself has confessed that it was his voice in one of the tapes which itself proves how desperate they are for power,” the former chief minister said.

According to him, Mr Yeddyurappa may be sitting quiet in the House but he was the mastermind of defections of coalition MLAs. “He is a power monger. The Bharatiya Janata Party in the state is behaving shamelessly to capture power by orchestrating Operation Lotus. People of Karnataka are aware of this,” he said. Reiterating that the BJP did not secure a mandate from the people of Karnataka in 2018 when it fell short of the numbers required to form the government, Mr Siddaramaiah also admitted that neither the Congress nor  Janata Dal (S) secured the people's mandate in the assembly polls.

“They (BJP) too were short of the numbers like us.  We both came to power based on ideology, not because of the greed for power,” he argued.

The former chief minister also warned  all the rebel MLAs who have flown to Mumbai, that they will repent like the MLAs  who had crossed over to the saffron party in 2008-09 under Operation Lotus. “All 14 MLAs who had crossed over to the BJP by ditching their parent party  failed to win in the subsequent Assembly polls. The same fate awaits those 17 MLAs who have now decided to camp in Mumbai,” he warned.

BJP meet today, BSY govt by weekend?

The BJP which has been waiting in the wings for power for the last six years, is all set to form the new government by the weekend with jubilant party legislators likely to elect former CM B.S. Yeddyurappa as their legislature party leader on Wednesday. The legislature party meeting will be held at Ramada resort on the outskirts of Bengaluru, said BJP MLC and state general secretary N. Ravikumar. Before meeting the governor to stake claim to form the  new government, the BJP will have to complete certain formalities. After the legislature party elects Yeddyurappa as its leader, the party's parliamentary board headed by the prime minister has to approve Mr Yeddyurappa's name. At least two days will be required for this and unless the central BJP gives the green signal, Yeddyurappa will not meet the governor to stake claim, said BJP sources. Source close to Yeddyurappa said that he is likely to take oath on Friday after which the legislature session may reconvene on July 29.

Prez rule an option? Top brass to consult RSS

The BJP top brass is reportedly in two minds over formation of government and is reportedly getting a feedback from the RSS and senior leaders before deciding if President’s rule is a better option. For one, the leadership is concerned about the disqualification procedure involving the rebel MLAs  and feels that if it drags on for too long,  it could impact the prospects of the new government. They are also assessing the popularity of former CM Siddaramaiah in north Karnataka  and whether he will be able to swing votes if snap polls are held.  Sources said the Congress and JD(S) MLAs who have resigned from the Assembly, are putting forth too many conditions which BJP leaders feel will derail the government if it is formed now. “If the government is formed, the party will have to depend on the rebels and it could be a repeat of 2008 when we had a shaky start because of our dependence on the Independents,” sources said. Two, by imposing President’s rule, the party wants to watch the stance adopted by the rebel MLAs. “Within a couple of months, we will be in a position to assess their intention. We can then decide if the party should form the government,” sources explained.