Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa is also undergoing treatment for coronavirus infection at the same Manipal Hospital.
"Before January 15 next year, when the election will be one year away, we are planning to select candidates for at least 150 assembly constituencies, so that they can start working," Kumaraswamy told reporters.
The chief minister said he has certain compulsions as a politician.
The PM is seen as slipping up in confidence levels as aired by his 'exposure' of the BRS on a crucial issue as alliance negotiations, which is not done under normal circumstances, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Janata Dal - Secular on Monday released its first list of 64 candidates for the first phase of Assembly polls on May 10, nominating former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy and his elder brother H D Revanna to contest again from Ramanagara and Holenarasipura seats, respectively. Former ministers who secured nominations include N Cheluvarayaswamy (Nagamangala), B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan (Chamarajpet) and H K Kumaraswamy (Sakleshpur-reserved).
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Sunday charted out a bigger role for his son and Bharatiya Janata Party state vice-president B Y Vijayendra to make a dent into the Congress and Janata Dal-Secular citadel in old Mysuru region.
A Bangalore court has directed the police to register a case against former Karnataka chief minister H D Kumaraswamy and probe whether some of his remarks had hurt the religious sentiments of Veerashaiva community.
While the ruling BJP, riding on the Modi juggernaut, wants to break the 38-year jinx and retain its southern citadel, the Congress is seeking to wrest power to give the party much-needed elbow room and momentum to position itself as the main opposition player in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Kumaraswamy, who had been admitted to Wockhardt Hospital following complaints of chest pain, had been diagnosed to be suffering from severe calcific arotic valve stenosis, necessitating an open heart surgery for replacement of the blocked valve of his heart, hospital sources said. The four-and-half hour long surgery, which commenced at 9 am, was conducted by a team of 8 doctors, headed by Dr Vivek Jawali. "The surgery has gone well," Dr Vishal Bali, CEO of the hospital, said.
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.
The Congress met Karnataka Governor Rameshwar Thakur on Monday and urged him to dismiss the Kumaraswamy-led state government. Congress leaders also asked Thakur to impose President's rule in Karnataka. During the meeting, Congress legislators submitted individual letters to Thakur stating that they will not support any party in government formation.
A pilot project on paperless functioning which had been initiated in the IT-BT department of the state government was expected to be completed by next week, he said.
BJP MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi, who had stepped down as minister on March 3 following allegations of sexual harassment against him, said on Tuesday that the videos purportedly showing him with a woman were fake and vowed to send the 'conspirators' behind bars.
Union home minister Amit Shah on Saturday had pitched for Hindi as a common language for the country, reigniting the debate on the issue as a section of political parties in South India said they would oppose any attempt to "impose" the language.
The Karnataka legislative assembly on Wednesday witnessed chaotic and unruly scenes as angry Bharatiya Jansata Party legislators tore copies of bills and the agenda, and threw them at the deputy speaker, who was presiding, following which Speaker U T Khader suspended 10 of them for the remainder of the session.
The Karnataka Election Watch Committee of the Association of Democratic Reforms has found that several leaders, including former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and his brother H D Revanna, have not declared their PAN numbers while submitting their affidavits to the returning officer at the time of filing their nominations. 240 candidates from various parties in Karnataka have failed to declare their PAN numbers at the time of filing their nomination papers.
Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday emphatically stated that the government would not involve itself in acquiring land for special economic zones and investors would have to deal directly with the farmers.
Mamatha Nichani speaks about her political ambitions, her thoughts on the political scenario and her decision to join the Congress, a party which her father, Ramakrishna Hegde, had opposed all his life.
The petition filed by Yeddyurappa said that on October one, Kumaraswamy son of former prime minister H D Deve Gowda alleged that a Rs 50 crore kickback was involved in awarding the contract for construction of residential quarters for economically-weaker sections in Ejipura in Bangalore to a private construction company Maverick Holdings.
Within a week of assuming power, the Congress government in Karnataka has expanded its cabinet on Saturday, filling all posts.
After Kumaraswamy was shifted out of the ICU, Governor Rameshwar Thakur, his father and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, accompanied by his wife Chennamma, other family members and friends visited him.
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.
Close aides of Kumaraswamy told rediff.com that the former chief minister was stressed out after the recent political developments in the state and hence had to undergo check up. They said he was particularly stressed after the Janata Dal Secular-Bharatiya Janata Party government collapsed in the state.
In the much expected exercise that takes the state ministry's strength to the maximum permissible limit of 34, Kumaraswamy inducted three ministers from his party Janata Dal (Secular) and two from the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Janata Dal-Secular chief HD Kumaraswamy alleged "horse-trading" in the Karnataka Rajya Sabha elections claiming that Congress leader Siddaramaiah was pressurising JD-S MLAs to not vote for their own party but that of the candidate of the grand old party.
Thakur is likely to meet the Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil and submit his report.
Kumaraswamy's remarks assumed significance in the backdrop of former home minister Prakash rushing to Delhi on Friday to continue talks with Congress leaders in a bid to concretise efforts for government formation proposal.
300 senior engineers have been transferred, 100 engineers have been promoted while 25 Karnataka Administrative Service officials and 65 Deputy Superintendents of Police were given transfer letters as per their liking.
Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy was summoned by Governor Rameshwar Thakur on Monday and asked to explain his stand about the ongoing political crisis. During the hour-long meeting with the chief minister, the governor asked Kumaraswamy to make his stance clear. Thakur also wanted to know the Janata Dal Secular's next course of action. Kumaraswamy sought time till October 18, so that he could prove his majority in the Legislative Assmebly after a trust vote.
"We will go to the people's court," said Kumaraswamy while dropping broad hints about dumping coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party on the eve of crucial meetings in Delhi which will decide the fate of the 20-month-old coalition government. He unleashed a scathing attack on the BJP leadership for remaining mute spectators to the 'character assassination campaign' by the party's Bellary unit leaders.
During the meeting, Chief Minister Kumaraswamy is reported to have told his legislators about his intention to resign from the post of chief minister. However, the MLAs were united in their stand and urged him not to step down.
The move came following the hour-long meeting of the party in Bangalore, necessitated by the Janata Dal-Secular's refusal to hand over power as promised on October 3.
Honour the committment or just forget about the coalition," declared senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha in Bangalore on Monday. "There is no further scope for negotiations on power transfer," he added.
Kumaraswamy said Sriramulu has submitted his resignation several times in the past, but that did not change anything.
Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy maintained the suspense and refused to divulge any information. Yashwant Sinha, who is in charge of party affairs in Karnataka, arrived in Bangalore on Friday evening to sort out the issue.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh announced Rs 10 lakh each to Mumbai boys Rohit Sharma and Ajit Agarkar.
The Karnataka state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party has decided to be more assertive in their approach to put to an end the free run of their coalition partner the Janata Dal-Secular.
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.
The coalition government is on a shaky wicket with 16 MLAs -- 13 of the Congress and three of the Janata Dal-Secular -- resigning their assembly membership. Besides, two independent legislators, who were made ministers recently to provide stability, have quit the ministry and withdrawn support.
