Karnataka may well see the return of a coalition government, thanks to the existing crisis. Sources in the Bharatiya Janata Party say that even if the high command manages to find a solution to this problem, it will be short-lived and the crisis could commence after three months.
'Let anyone in Karnataka come forward and show that we have the licences to even a single square foot of land in the state,' challenges C V Nagesh, the Reddy brothers's lawyer.
Cracks in the JD-S were evident when H D Revanna, who is the son of JD-S chief H D Deve Gowda did not go to Rashtrapathi Bhavan where both the JD-S and BJP MLAs were paraded before President Prathibha Patil.
While there are some new faces in the cabinet, leaders such as BJP president JP Nadda and Jual Oram have returned as ministers.
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Friday met Governor H R Bharadwaj at the Raj Bhavan reportedly to put an end to the bitter feud between them. A war of words had ensued between the CM and the governor after the latter asked Yeddyurappa to take a second floor test to prove his majority in the assembly. He had also pulled up the Bharatiya Janata Party-led state government for not taking any action against its allegedly corrupt ministers.
The top guns of all the major political parties were on a campaign blitz across the state in the past few days, even as the ruling BJP has been striving to break the 38-year-old pattern of alternating governments and retain its southern citadel.
Following the Cabinet reshuffle in Karnataka, a major revolt has broken in the Bharatiya Janata Party with the powerful Reddy brothers terming Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa a "betrayer''.
'There were deep discussions within the Sangh Parivar before this decision was made.' 'They were convinced, and only then did the Modi government proceed with the caste census.'
The Bharatiya Janata Party in Karnataka has taken its tally to 116 with one more Independent MLA joining them. Yet, the party is not taking any chances. Worried about possible horse-trading, the party has packed off all MLAS to an unknown destination and they will be directly presented moments before the swearing-in ceremony. Interestingly, all the six have been assured of ministerial berths and will be sworn in Friday along with the rest of the BJP MLAs.
Expressing grave concern over the luring of teenaged girls under the guise of 'love jihad", the Karnataka government on Friday said it would initiate a probe into the matter. Love jihad refers to the incidents of young non-Muslim girls allegedly being lured into marriage and then converted to Islam.
"We have a commitment before the people of Karnataka. Parliament elections are ahead. So, I have to bow to the AICC president and the Gandhi family. In the larger interest of the party (I have agreed to the formula) and why not, because sometimes the ice should break. Ultimately, there is a responsibility towards what we have a commitment to the people of Karnataka and we have to deliver," he said.
The electoral predictions made by the various exit polls about the outcome of the Karnataka election seem to have hit bull's eye. The Congress has, expectedly, taken a major lead within the first couple of hours of counting of votes. But the trend that has surprised pundits and politicians alike is the revival of the Janata Dal - Secular, which has relegated the Bharatiya Janata Party to the third position.
The exit polls on Saturday predicted the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance winning most of the seats in Congress-ruled Karnataka in the Lok Sabha elections and the Congress not putting up a good show.
Joining issue with senior party leader Rajnath Singh over his "no vacancy" comment, beleaguered Bharatiya Janata Party Karnataka strongman B S Yeddyurappa on Monday said his comments were "unwarranted" and maintained that he had never clamoured for any party position. "I have never clamoured for any party position or the chief minister's post. The comments are unwarranted," Yeddyurappa told reporters.
Karnataka Assembly Speaker Jagadish Shettar on Monday quit the post, paving way for his induction into the ministry on Tuesday as part of a compromise formula evolved to end the recent dissidence against Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa.
Jagadish Shettar, a Lingayat leader backed by Bharatiya Janata Party leader B S Yeddyurappa, was on Thursday sworn in as the chief minister of Karnataka. The swearing-in ceremony took place in the absence of the entire Opposition, which decided to stay away.
The Vokkaliga community, which was upset after D Sadananda Gowda was replaced by Lingayat leader Jagadish Shettar as chief minister, has now asked all ministers and MLAs belonging to the community in the BJP to resign immediately.
Bypolls will be held on Wednesday in 31 assembly seats spread across 10 states and Kerala's Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency, from where Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is making her electoral debut. Though these bye-elections are not going to have any bearing on the governments, they are seen as a big test for the Congress and the INDIA bloc which failed to put up a united show in the recent Haryana assembly polls. Most of these seats fell vacant after the sitting MLAs contested the Lok Sabha elections and won while in some constituencies, the bypolls are being held due to death of the representatives. The Wayanad seat was vacated by Rahul Gandhi, who also won from the Rae Bareli parliamentary constituency which he kept. Voting will be held in seven seats in Rajasthan, six in West Bengal, five in Assam, four seats in Bihar, three in Karnataka, two seats in Madhya Pradesh, and one seat each in Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala and Meghalaya. Votes will be counted on November 23.
With October 3 being the official date for the Janatha Dal-Secular to transfer power to the Bharatiya Janata Party in Karnataka, it becomes more and more confusing whether the transfer of power will be a smooth affair or not.
Yeddyurappa is planning his strategy quietly as he doesn't want to be blamed if the government falls before the end of its tenure, reveals Vicky Nanjappa
Bharatiya Janata Party's national leaders would meet senior party leaders of Karnataka on October 30 in New Delhi to work out a strategy to placate disgruntled party strongman B S and ensure that he does not quit the party, BJP state president K S Eshwarappa said on Saturday.
Neerja Chowdhury spoke to former prime minister and JD-S H D Deve Gowda about the ongoing political crisis in Karnataka.
The future course of Karnataka politics may be decided on Monday by a three-judge bench of the high court comprising Justices Abdul Nasir, Mohan Shanthan Goudar and A S Bopanna. The bench will deliver a verdict on the validity of the suspension of five independent Members of Legislative Assembly by Speaker K G Bopaiah.
Sankeshwar, who represent the Dharwad north constituency, has decided to float a regional political outfit.
The Congress seems to be heading for the Karnataka polls so far on the strength of its local leadership and focusing on issues concerning the state, making corruption a central theme of its campaigning.
Congress leaders and workers from Kolar have been exerting pressure on the Congress legislature party leader to contest from there.
While some of the senior Congress leaders are sending feelers to the JD-S regarding power sharing in the seat, a host of other Congress legislators feel that any sort of alignment with the JD-S will spell doom in Karnataka.
Karnataka's legislator from Bharatiya Janata Party, Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, has claimed that he was approached by some people offering him the state chief minister's position, in exchange for Rs 2,500 crore.
The counting of votes for the bypolls to 46 assembly seats in 13 states and in the Lok Sabha segments of Nanded in Maharashtra and Wayanad in Kerala, a crucial electoral exercise since the parliamentary polls in April-May, will begin at 8 am on Saturday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday demanded that Karnataka Governor Rameshwar Thakur immediately call the BJP to form the government as they had the required strength. Referring to reported statements by senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily, that the governor had sent a "statement of facts" to the Centre, the BJP wondered how this was made known to him as the report has not been made public.
B V Acharya, one of the senior most advocates in Karnataka, resigned as the advocate general on Wednesday. There is no one reason been given for the resignation and the former two time AG also does not spell out the real reason for him quitting.
On Friday night there were reports stating that the CM had called Yediyurappa and assured him that the transfer of power would be smooth and as promised.
West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee will not be attending the swearing-in ceremony of Congress leader Siddaramaiah as the Karnataka CM and has designated party leader Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar for the programme, a Trinamool Congress leader said.
The Congress and JD-S have made much of Amit Shah's remarks about milk co-operatives. 'If the Opposition harps on the statement, it could add to the narrative that Gujarat was trying to take over Karnataka.'
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Sunday took on Governor H R Bhardwaj alleging that he was trying to throw the Bharatiya Janata Party out of power and install a Congress government in the state.
"How can I continue in the ministry when the minorities are neglected?" asked Khan, becoming the first minister to strike a discordant note ever since the JD(S)-BJP ministry came to power in February last year.
Putting the Bharatiya Janata Party in a piquant situation, Karnataka Governor Rameshwar Thakur has asked the B S Yeddyurappa government, which assumed office on Friday, to prove its majority in the Assembly before his customary address.The Yeddyurappa-led government had obtained the support of all the six Independent legislators to form the government. The BJP had fallen just three seats short of a simple majority, winning 110 seats in the 224-member Assembly.
Accusing the BJP of working to 'divide India and spread hate and violence', he asserted that a fight of ideologies is going on in India.
The Congress on Saturday made a stunning comeback in Karnataka ousting the Bharatiya Janata Party from its lone southern citadel with a comfortable majority in a morale booster win that will be key for reviving its electoral fortunes ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said if the Congress had formed an alliance with the Janata Dal-Secular before the election, the results would have been different.
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