The biggest loser in the ongoing political tug-of-war between the Janata Dal-Secular and the Bharatiya Janata Party will be the state of Karnataka, which has incurred a loss of $5 billion in terms of business investments. Market pundits say that the perennial political instability in the state and indecision by the government in the past one year has lead to the loss of investment opportunities.
Prakash had initially been in talks with the BJP, soon after he left the JD-S due to differences with party chief H D Deve Gowda. However due to differences in principles, Prakash decided to join the Congress party along with around ten other of his supporters.
In a hard-hitting interview to rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa Sadananda Gowda says the BJP will not settle for anything other than power.
Reacting to the charges made by the JD-S against the BJP in Thursday's convention, Yediyurappa said that he too had a long list of charges against the JD-S but would not like to discuss it now.
Most people feel that the JD-S should hand over power to the BJP as per their agreement, while some feel that if the relationship between the coalition partners has soured to this extent, the state should opt for mid-term elections.
In the midst of the all the drama that is taking place with regard to the transfer of power in Karnataka, one thing becomes clear and that is the Bharatiya Janata Party at the moment is in no mood for compromise.
In spite of the JD (S) flip-flopping on the issue of power transfer in Karnataka, its ally Bhartiya Janata Party is hopeful that the JD-S will keep its side of the bargain, party spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy said.
Janata Dal-Secular chief H D Deve Gowda on Thursday said that there is no question of him holding talks with senior Bharatiya Janata Party leaders in New Delhi on the transfer of power until the BJP in Karnataka sorted out its internal differences.
The Janata Dal-Secular said it will transfer power to the Bharatiya Janata Party in Karnataka only if it acts against Tourism Minister, B Sriramulu. The 2 parties formed the govt with an understanding Kumaraswamy will hand over power to BJP on Oct 3.
Gowda had said that his party was ready to join the National Democratic Alliance provided the BJP permits H D Kumaraswamy to continue as chief minister for the next 20 months.
"I will personally on Friday, May 31 at 10 am will come before the SIT and will cooperate with the investigation and will respond to it (charges). I have faith in court and I am confident I will come out of false cases through court," Pajwal said in a video statement aired on Kannada TV channel Asianet Suvarna News.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition ministry headed by H D Kumaraswamy in Karnataka was expanded Friday with the induction of 20 ministers.
The Opposition Congress and Janata Dal-Secular members continued their protest in the Karnataka legislative assembly for the third straight night demanding a CBI inquiry into the alleged illegal mining scam.
The joint session of the assembly will start from Februay 24.
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.
The new entrants will be welcomed into the party by All India Congress Committee general secretary Prithviraj Chavan in the KPCC office, party state general secretary M Ramachandrappa told PTI in Bangalore.
The mining scam in Karnataka could easily be worth Rs 2,500 crore says Justice Santosh Hegde, the state's Lokayukta. An exclusive first person account to Rediff.com
He had the support of 138 legislators in the 224-member House.
The decision on alliance with BJP in the polls will be taken by JD-S President Deve Gowda.
Deputy Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa has indicated that he will hold the finance portfolio.
JD(S)-BJP not to go for full-fledged ministry on Feb 3
The meeting did not make much headway towards finding a solution to the Karnataka crisis.
Asked about BJP's role in the efforts to oust the Dharam Singh government, Bharti said, "It is justified if the intention is to help people and not to make money."
The new ministers were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor T N Chaturvedi in the Vidhan Soudha premises.
The Janata Dal-Secular on Tuesday charged Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa with violating the model code of conduct by addressing individual letters to beneficiaries of old age pension scheme and said it would complain to the Election Commission about it.
The Congress has decided to hunt for new allies while retaining the old ones in its bid to return to power at the Centre after the Lok Sabha elections. The grand old party's strategy revolves around getting new alliance partners like the Janata Dal-Secular in Karnataka, Trinamool Congress of Mamta Banerjee in West Bengal, Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam led by actor- turned-politician Vijaykanth in Tamil Nadu, apart from the existing partners.
The state has also been battered by administrative chaos due to political instability in the coalition era notwithstanding the Congress-Janata Dal Secular and JDS-BJP dispensations' claims of having ensured development.
Polling is scheduled in all 20 seats of Kerala, 14 of the 28 seats in Karnataka, 13 seats in Rajasthan, eight seats each in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, six seats in Madhya Pradesh, five seats each in Assam and Bihar, three seats each in Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, and one seat each in Manipur, Tripura and Jammu and Kashmir.
Was C M Ibrahim's Rediff Interview the last straw for Deve Gowda?
Raising doubts about the longevity of the Siddaramaiah-led new Congress government in Karnataka, Janata Dal-Secular leader H D Kumaraswamy on Thursday said its future is dependent on the results of the 2024 Parliament elections.
The Nationalist Congress Party has claimed all the 28 Congress corporators in Malegaon city in Maharashtra's Nashik district, including the mayor, crossed over to the party on Thursday.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the National Executive of JD(S) held at the residence of former prime minister and party chief H D Deve Gowda in New Delhi on Monday.
'Blanket protection to MLAs, who are driven not by ideology but by far baser concerns, is unheard-of'
According to party sources, the Congress leadership has been making efforts to convince some ministers and lawmakers to contest, as they have faced problems in identifying winnable candidates in several segments.
"You are made to read lies, so please don't read it," BJP members said.
The ghosts of Malegaon blast are still haunting the Congress at the textile mill town. After a losing streak in the Lok Sabha and state assembly elections, the Congress again lost in the mayor elections for the Malegaon Municipal Corporation held on Tuesday morning.
Revenue Minister M P Prakash was appointed Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister in place of Janata Dal (Secular) rebel Siddaramaiah on Saturday.
However, the national party count has gone down to six from 14 in over seven decades.
Top Left leaders on Thursday held discussions with former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda in Delhi on the prevailing political scenario reportedly giving focus on major developments in the country and Bahujan Samaj Party-ruled Uttar Pradesh.
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