'BJP will now try money and muscle to steal mandate'

Here’s how Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party leaders reacted after the Supreme Court ordered for a floor test in Karnataka on Saturday.

The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party, both, welcomed the Supreme Court order on the floor test, with each side stating that they would prove their majority in the assembly.

Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Friday asserted he was “100 per cent” confident that he would prove the majority in the state assembly.

“We will abide by the Supreme Court verdict... we have got100 per cent support and cooperation to prove the majority,” Yeddyurappa told reporters soon after the apex court’s order.

“Amidst all these political games, we will prove our majority tomorrow. We will obey the Supreme Court order,” said Yeddyurappa, who faces an uphill task rustling up the 112 MLAs required to cross the floor test hurdle.

Yeddyurappa said he would discuss with the chief secretary and call the assembly session, and other procedures will follow.

Union Minister Prakash Javadekar, who was also the BJP’s Karnataka poll in-charge also expressed confidence that the B S Yeddyurappa government will prove its majority in the state assembly.

“BJP is ready and confident of winning trust vote in Karnataka. We will prove our majority on the floor of the House,” he tweeted.

“The Supreme Court has ordered to prove majority in the assembly tomorrow at 4 pm. BJP welcomes this. We are confident that tomorrow at 4 pm BJP legislators and those supporting it will prove majority,” Karnataka BJP General Secretary Shobha Karandlaje told reporters.

She said, “The BJP under the leadership of Yeddyurappa has worked enough to prove the majority. With confidence tomorrow at 4 pm we will prove our majority.”

Responding to a question as to how the BJP would prove majority, Karandlaje said, “Already many people are in touch with us, more than 120 MLAs are supporting us. BJP will prove its majority tomorrow.”

The Congress, too, were elated with the Supreme Court’s order with them saying the Constitution has won and democracy restored.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi said the Supreme Court order on floor test in Karnataka was a vindication of the party’s stand that the governor acted “unconstitutionally”.

Taking to Twitter, Gandhi said the court has called out BJP’s “bluff” of forming a government even without the numbers and alleged that the party will now resort to using money and muscle power to “steal” the mandate.

“Today’s Supreme Court order, vindicates our stand that Governor Vajubhai Vala acted unconstitutionally,” he said on Twitter.

He also said that the party has been stopped legally from forming their government as they do not have the numbers. “The BJP’s bluff that it will form the government, even without the numbers, has been called out by the court. Stopped legally, they will now try money and muscle, to steal the mandate,” he said.

Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala said the Constitution has rejected the “unconstitutional” decision of the Karnataka Governor. “Constitution wins, Democracy restored! B S Yeddyurappa does remain a 1 day CM - Constitution rejects an illegitimate CM as also the unconstitutional decision of Governor of Karnataka (sic),” he said on Twitter.

Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who represented the Congress-Janata Dal-Secular combine in the apex court, termed the Supreme Court’s decision “historic”, and said, “Interim Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa has been restrained from taking policy decisions till tomorrow.”

Yeddyurappa was sworn-in as the chief minister yesterday.

Governor Vajubhai Vala had given 15 days to Yeddyurappa prove his majority in the assembly.

The BJP has 104 MLAs in the House. The Congress won 78 seats, while the JD-S was victorious in 37 constituencies.