The Congress will not finalise a pre-poll alliance with B S Yeddyurappa's Karnataka Janata Paksha, senior party leader Veerappa Moily said on Monday.
Bharatiya Janata Party's ally Janata Dal United, whose antipathy to Narendra Modi is well-known, is likely to make a strong demand for the early projection of the next prime ministerial candidate of the alliance and emphasise its commitment to secularism ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
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.
Congress has propped up Vice-President Hamid Ansari's name for a second term and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has begun the exercise of soliciting support for his candidature.
Beleaguered Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's political credibility will be tested by the outcome of the three by-elections. And cries that he must resign will become shriller if the Congress loses them.
'There cannot be an alliance with Congress that does not honour the coalition dharma'
BJP let Yeddyurappa get away with indiscretions as it did not want to rock the boat in Karnataka, says Aditi Phadnis
Janata Dal - Secular leader H D Kumaraswamy on Sunday ended his two-day-old 'indefinite' fast to demand a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's allegation that he and his family had amassed illegal wealth worth Rs 1,500 crore. Kumaraswamy was offered a glass of fruit juice by Jnanapeetha Awardee U R Ananthamurthy at Freedom Park after the latter urged him to withdrew the fast, which the JD-S leader accepted.
Former Karnataka chief minister and Janata Dal-Secular leader H D Kumaraswamy on Saturday began an indefinite fast in Bengaluru pressing for a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's charge that his family members amassed illegal wealth to the tune of Rs 1,500 crore.
In an interview with rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, Siddaramaiah admitted his aspirations for the top post but was quick to add that he will abide by the high command's instructions.
Under attack from the Congress and the Janatha Dal Secular, while also battling threats of being ousted, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Monday said his government enjoyed majority. He said there was no need for 'Operation Lotus' under which opposition members of the legislative assembly were lured to the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Karnataka unit of the Congress is yet to name its chief ministerial candidate. The party has intentionally shied away from naming its chief ministerial candidate. It is currently riding high on its recent success in the local body polls and does not want any infighting to break out.
Former Karnataka Chief Minister S Bangarappa has filed a petition before the Election Commission of India praying to disqualify Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa from his membership of the state assembly, alleging that the latter has furnished "false" affidavit concerning his assets and liabilities.
The report of the Karnataka minorities commission on the alleged Rs 2 lakh crore Wakf property scam generated considerable heat in the Legislative assembly, where an agitated opposition demanded a thorough enquiry and punishment to those found guilty.
The legislators were camping in Mumbai since Saturday evening after resigning and withdrawing support to the 13-month-old Janata Dal-Secular-Congress government in Karnataka, bringing it on the verge of collapse.
The Supreme Court order directing Karnataka to release 2.44 TMC ft of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu evoked protests from the opposition in the state assembly and the government promised them that legal opinion would be sought before deciding on future course of action.
"We have met Governor H R Bhardwaj and requested him to recommend to the Central government to dissolve the Assembly and dismiss the state government under Article 356 for failing to govern as per Constitutional laws," opposition leader in the assembly Siddaramaiah told media persons.
As soon as the assembly met, Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda informed the members about the resignations of the three ministers, caught on camera watching sleazy clippings on their mobile phone in the House on Tuesday evening
Former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Saturday said he wanted to bring in a "change" in his style of functioning in politics as he was a "victim of conspiracy hatched by the Congress, the Janata Dal - Secular and detractors within the Bharatiya Janata Party". "I am a victim of conspiracy scripted by Congress, JD-S and detractors with my party. To avoid getting victimised in the future, I have to be changed, I need to be changed and I will be changed," he said.
Accusing Bharatiya Janata Party of attempting 'Operation Kamala' to destabalise his government, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday asserted that they will not be successful in their efforts, as none of the Congress legislators will fall victim to it.
He said he has directed police to identify, trace and secure the victims in view of the alleged kidnapping of a victim at Krishnaraja Nagar town in Mysuru district.
In a tit-for-tat offensive against the family members of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Karnataka on Thursday ordered a probe into certain land deals said to have been made by them.
There was more trouble in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Thursday with the House Committee recommending the suspension of 15 members of Legislative Assembly for creating ruckus on the floor of the House.
There was more trouble in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Thursday with the House Committee recommending the suspension of 15 members of Legislative Assembly for creating ruckus on the floor of the House.
Karanatka's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party toll early leads in the crucial zilla and taluka panchayat elections on Tuesday by emerging victorious in 12 out of the 30 districts in the fray. However, party insiders say that the results were below their expectations.
Police have made tight security arrangements for the swearing-in ceremony. Bharatiya Janata Party president Rajnath Singh and the party's senior leader M Venkaiah Naidu will be present
Kumaraswamy has with him, 46 of the 58 MLAs and has broken away from the faction that remains loyal to his father, H D Deve Gowda.
Janata Dal-Secular candidate Jamir Ahmed on Sunday won the Chamarajpet assembly seat in the byelection held in Karnataka on June 2.
Prajwal Revanna's former car driver Karthik and Bharatiya Janata Party leader G Devaraje Gowda accused each other of leaking the alleged sleaze videos of the Janata Dal-Secular Hassan MP which has caused a big embarrassment to the regional party.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Sunday found support from rivals Communist party of India - Marxist, Janata Dal - Secular and Lok Janshakti Party for his suggestion for the re-introduction of ballot papers in place of Electronic Voting Machines.Advani has not cast any doubts on the results of the Lok Sabha elections but feels the country should revert to ballot papers, starting with the Maharashtra assembly elections in October and some more states later.
This motion is in keeping with a directive by Governor T N Chaturvedi to him on January 28, to prove his majority within eight days of assuming office.
in payment of compensation to land owners by Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board.
B S Yediyurappa, deputy chief minister designate of the new Bharatiya Janata Party-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition government to be sworn-in in Karnataka on February 3, Sunday said the government would formulate a Common Minimum Programme.
Here's how some of the heavyweights fared in the Karnataka elections.
Rebel Janata Dal-Secular leader M P Prakash on Monday held consultations with party legislators supporting him to chalk out the strategy of the group, which is opposing the renewed ties with Bharatiya Janata Party on government formation in Karnataka.
Janata Dal - Secular chief H D Deve Gowda on Wednesday said the final shape of the Third Front would be known only after the Lok Sabha elections."The first part of the alliance is ready. The second part would be decided only after the election results are announced," Gowda said. He added that "all secular parties will rise to find a solution on forming the government at the Centre".
Former prime minister and Janata Dal-Secular supremo Deve Gowda on Monday announced the formation of the Third Front, an amalgamation of eight parties including the Left, and touted as a political alternative to the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Janata Dal-Secular in Karnataka said on Sunday that Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa was responsible for the "instability" of the BJP government and not the opposition. "The chief minister himself is responsible for the instability of his government and not the opposition parties," JDS state unit president H D Kumaraswamy said while participating in a function here.
12 years after he was sacked form JD-S, Siddaramaiah, offered Karnataka's CMship to his political foe Kumaraswamy.
