Karnataka crisis: Congress Legislature Party meeting underway

As uncertainty looms large over the coalition government in the state, the Congress leaders have called the Legislature Party (CLP) meeting today morning, which is currently going on in the Vidhan Sabha here.

The crucial meeting precedes the Assembly Session beginning July 12. According to sources, the meeting has been called to discuss strategies to save the 13-month old Congress-JDS government, which is faced with worst ever crisis after 11 MLAs put in their papers to Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar on June 6.

Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and other Congress leaders have claimed that they will overcome the current bout of crisis as well.

All the ministers from the two parties have resigned as well to give a free hand to Kumaraswamy to restructure his Council of Ministers and accommodate the dissident MLAs.

Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Monday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of conspiring to topple Congress-JDS coalition government in Karnataka.

"The BJP doesn't want the Congress to be in power anywhere, be it in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan or Karnataka. They are conspiring to topple the government in Karnataka. This unholy attempt to topple the government in Karnataka and the cheap ways employed in doing so are harming democracy," Chowdhury told ANI.

"They are doing everything at their disposal to see the government falls. When you see the sequence of events, it is clear that the BJP is the one trying to bring down Karnataka government," Chowdhury added.

Sources on Monday said that BS Yeddyurappa's Personal Assistant (PA) Santosh escorted the dissident Congress MLAs from a private hotel on UB Road to Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar's chamber in the Legislative Assembly.

Yeddyurappa is the president of the BJP's state unit. The party has clarified that he would be the chief minister if a new government is formed in the state.

Santosh was also seen with H Nagesh, the minister who has resigned from the Union Council of Ministers, at the airport.

Reacting to this, senior Congress leader DK Shivakumar said: "I got a call from Nagesh. I rushed to the airport but by that time the flight had already taken off. Our leaders will look into it."

On Monday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh while speaking in the Lok Sabha said that his party has "nothing" to do with the current political situation in Karnataka.

"Whatever is happening in Karnataka, our party has nothing to do with it. Our party is fully committed to the dignity of parliamentary democracy," said Singh in the Lower House of Parliament.

JDS rebel MLA H Vishwanath had said that 14 MLAs have jointly tendered their resignations to Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar and requested him to accept them.

Among the MLAs who resigned are Ramalinga Reddy, Anand Singh, Ramesh Jarkiholi, BC Patil, H Vishwanath, Narayan Gowda, S Hebbar, Mahesh Kumatalli, Gopalayya, and Pratap Gowda Patil. However, the Speaker is yet to accept the resignations.

-ANI

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