Karnataka MLAs are insulting people’s mandate right now, and voters must punish them

Politics

By resigning just a year into their term, the MLAs are basically saying that the voter’s decision is irrelevant, compared to personal ambition and gain.

Ragamalika Karthikeyan

Karnataka politics is facing a crisis, once again. As several MLAs hand in their resignations to the Speaker in a clear attempt to topple the government, the state is witnessing drama that repeats itself every few years: MLAs herded into buses and planes to be shut up inside hotels; leaders who are supposed to be representing voters pushing and pulling and mobbing other leaders to achieve their ends; legislators competing in literal running races for all the world to see… The people of Karnataka have witnessed such ridiculous antics from their elected representatives – from every party and ideology – so many times, that they’re tired and simply don’t care. However, MLAs of Karnataka are using and abusing this weariness of the voter to go ahead and insult them. Technically, the Indian voter elects a representative, not a party. Of course, it would be naive to believe that the voter’s choice has nothing to do with the party – there is no doubt that a leader like Narendra Modi has popular support which translates to votes for the BJP’s chosen candidate in many seats. We have also seen examples of Independents winning with support from every party’s voter base – the way Sumalatha won the Parliamentary elections from Mandya just months ago. At the end of the day however, it’s the candidate’s Constitutional duty to represent their electorate. It’s the local councilor, the MLA, and the MP, who have the job of connecting with the voter directly and ensuring that their interests are best represented, in the local body, the Assembly, or the Parliament. Karnataka’s rebel MLAs want to abdicate this duty recklessly. And their reason is not public good. Ramesh Jarkiholi from Gokak; Byrathi Basavaraj from KR Puram; ST Somashekhar from Yeshwanthpura; BC Patil from Hirekerur; Shivaram Hebbar from Yellapur; Pratapgouda Patil from Maski; K Gopalaiah from Mahalakshmi Layout; Mahesh Kumathalli from Athani; AH Vishwanath from Hunasuru; Narayana Gowda from Krishanarajapete; Munirathna Naidu from RR Nagar; Ramalinga Reddy from BTM Layout; Roshan Baig from Shivajinagar; MTB Nagaraj from Hoskote; K Sudhakar from Chikkaballapura; and Anand Singh from Vijayanagara want to resign from the job given to them by the voters of these constituencies for alleged personal gain. They’re eager to give up the mandate they’ve received for a full five years – allegedly for money, minister posts and business interests. At this juncture, it’s important to also mention the anti-defection law – the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution – that forces legislators to go along with the party they got elected from, even if it’s not in the best interest of their constituency. This law is problematic on many counts – it doesn’t let a legislator vote as per their conscience, and it diminishes the representative nature of our democracy in doing so. When legislators truly believe that the party or alliance they belong to is not working in the interest of the people, the anti-defection law doesn’t let them exercise the power given by the voter to them. That Karnataka legislators want to resign instead of simply changing their allegiance inside the House is because of this. But if they have such a burden on their conscience, why don’t these legislators work to change the law? Why don’t they bring in amendments, canvass for support, and change things that are problematic, in the time that has been given to them – with the resources at their disposal thanks to public money? That none of the MLAs who want to resign – or those trying to convince them otherwise, and those watching on the sidelines – have actually brought up any public issue in the duration of this circus shows this exercise is about power, not about the people. By resigning just a year into their term – which was granted to them by the voter for a full five years – the MLAs are basically shrugging and rolling their eyes at their duties. They declaring that the voter’s mandate is irrelevant in the face of personal ambition and gain. Which is why you – the voter – need to punish them, no matter how exhausted you are by their juvenile antics, no matter how much you want to put your hands up in the air and give up. When the time comes for elections, voters from Gokak, KR Puram, Yeshwanthpura, Hirekerur, Yellapur, Maski, Mahalakshmi Layout, Athani, Hunasuru, Krishanarajapete, RR Nagar, BTM Layout, Shivajinagar, Hoskote, Chikkaballapura, Vijayanagara – and indeed every constituency in Karnataka – need to look at how their candidates’ wealth has changed since the last time they filed their affidavit. Voters need to question those who have abdicated their duties in the middle of the term – not just in the current crisis, but any time in the past – why they should trust them not to do so again. We should question people who want to represent us how they plan to deal with a crisis if they come across one, instead of jumping ship and abandoning their constituents. And if their answers are not satisfactory, voters must ensure they don’t get another mandate – just to throw it in the bin like a piece of garbage. Views expressed are the author’s own. 

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'The floor was sinking': Residents recount escape from Bengaluru building collapse

Mishap

Around 2 am on Wednesday, residents of Sai Adi Ambal residential building in Bengaluru woke up to a loud thud, tremors under their feet.

Geetika Mantri

Around 1.30 am on Wednesday, Arun* was in bed, browsing on his phone. The 41-year-old marketing professional would have slept by that time on most other days, but that night, he was awake. And he is thankful for that, for around that time, he heard a loud thud, and felt the floor shaking. Arun and his family live in a residential building, Sai Adi Ambal, in Thomas Town near Hutchins Road. In the wee hours of Wednesday, an under-construction building beside their apartment collapsed when the pillars in the basement gave way. After it collapsed, the structure leaned into the residential building, causing a part of the latter’s parking area to cave. The accident killed five people – two construction workers Shambu and Khagen in the first building, and the watchman Narayan, his wife Nirmala and their four-year-old daughter Anushka who lived in a single room in the parking lot of Sai Adi Ambal. Recalling the horrifying night to TNM, Arun says that after he and his woke up,  they rushed to their 12-year-old son’s room, woke him up as well as their domestic help. They all ran out of the house. “Then I realised that others also needed to know and leave the building. I thought, if we’re going to die, we might as well try and help out as many people as we can,” he tells TNM. And so, Arun started banging all the doors and telling people to get out of the building as he ran down the stairs. One of the persons whose doors he knocked on was Syed, who was staying on the third floor with one of the men who works for him. He too was awake that night. “I too heard a loud thud, and felt as though the building was leaning on one side. The floor seemed to sink and bend,” he tells TNM. Syed and his flatmate rushed out of their flat to find everyone waking up and doing the same, navigating through the darkness and dust in the corridors. However, as they reached the ground floor which was above the parking, they found their way blocked. They could not use the stairs leading to the parking to exit the building. Quick thinking allowed the residents to go into an apartment on the ground floor, and find a window. Because the building had sunk due to the parking collapsing in part, they climbed on to the window and on to the debris to leave the building. Once outside, the residents took in the scene. Beside Sai Adi Ambal, the yellow coloured under construction building lay in shambles. Two of its floors had given in, falling on to the unsuspecting construction workers who were in the basement. Arun realised that Narayan, Nirmala and Anushka were not part of the shaken crowd that was outside the building. “For 15 minutes I was in shock. Then, I came to my senses, and started calling out for Narayan and his family. I was losing hope because the parking area was in very bad shape,” he says.  An hour later, the police and Fire Department arrived. “We tried telling them that there are three people in the rubble under our building also. But perhaps they were also short-staffed or had their own restraints, because they all turned to the first building. In front of my eyes, I saw 4-5 people pulled out of the debris,” he says. Around 6 am, the NDRF arrived and rescue operations hastened up. About four hours later, the residents learnt that Narayan and his family had not survived the mishap. By around 1 pm, the search and rescue was wound up. During the course of the day, the rescue teams helped residents get important belongings like documents and clothes from their homes. Arun, who calls himself a practical person for the most part, couldn’t help but break down when he went back into the house and saw his son’s room had tilted to one side. “To think what could have happened to him had I not been awake and we hadn’t escaped in time terrified me,” he says. Arun and Syed were both owned their flats and had shelled out well tens of lakhs to buy them. “The house was in my wife’s name, and she was very attached to this place. But we have to move on,” Arun resigns. Not only have they faced losses there, but apart from small belongings, it is unlikely that residents will be able to recover bigger things like fridge, bed etc. The reason for the collapse of the yellow under-construction building was pinned on the weak foundation. “When they were constructing it also, I remember seeing water coming from the ground and the workers being unable to stop it despite covering it up with mud and silt. I remember asking them about it, but they said they had permission from the BBMP,” Arun says. “You don’t really get into these things unless you feel it’s dangerous. We thought since the BBMP had given permission, they might have a plan to remedy it” he adds. Further, Syed points out that it wasn’t just one extra floor that was being built atop the approved three floors. “From the front, the yellow building seemed to have only three plus one floors. However, if you look at the back, you could see they had actually built several extra floors, not just one. The must have caused the building to become unstable and tilt towards ours.” In the photo below, you can see that there seem to be five floors standing upright.  Arun and Syed say that while an FIR has also been registered against the builders and land owners of both plots of land, residents are consulting experts on how to best pursue legal action against them. *Name changed

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The Congress has a game plan in Karnataka: But will it work?

Politics

The Congress and JD(S) are working under the assumption that the BJP has promised ministerial berths to these MLAs.

Ragamalika Karthikeyan

The Congress-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka is insisting on disqualifying rebel MLAs instead of the Speaker accepting their resignations. The reason is simple – a disqualified MLA cannot become a minister until he or she is reelected.  A government can make anyone a minister, irrespective of whether they are a member of the House or not. The Constitution stipulates that a person made a minister in such a manner must become a member of the Assembly within six months of their appointment. This is how Manmohan Singh was made the Prime Minister of India in 2004, and how Yogi Adityanath was made the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 2017.   However, Article 164 (1B) of the Constitution says that a member who has been disqualified cannot be made a minister till the expiry of his or her term, or till he or she is reelected.  This means that the rebel MLAs, if disqualified, cannot be given ministries in case the BJP manages to form the next government following a trust vote.  The Congress and JD(S) are working under the assumption that the BJP has promised ministerial berths to these MLAs. They are using this clause to dissuade the MLAs from resigning, claiming that there is no guarantee that the BJP would keep such a promise once they are in power. And if the MLAs do decide not to come back to the Congress-JD(S) fold, this would be their punishment.  However, there is a precedent that the Congress-JD(S) needs to keep in mind. In 2015, Kerala Congress (M) MLA PC George was disqualified by the Assembly Speaker for anti-party activities under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution. However, in 2016, Kerala High Court quashed this disqualification and said that when PC George had already submitted his resignation, the Speaker should have accepted that instead of disqualifying him.  The other game plan of the Congress is to convince at least a few BJP MLAs to cross vote during the confidence motion in the Assembly.  Both these game plans however seem to be last minute attempts to save the government from toppling. The first is dependent on the assumption that the rebel MLAs are unwilling to wait for the bye-election to get their promised ministerial berths. As for the second – it is unlikely that BJP MLAs will cross vote at a time when their party is at an advantage.  The Congress, which had earlier petitioned the Supreme Court on disqualification of defector MLAs in Goa, is hoping that the apex court will rule in their favour – which will also help their situation in Karnataka. In their petition to the SC, the Congress has sought that the disqualification of MLAs should stop them from holding ministries for five years, instead of until the next election.

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HD Kumaraswamy seeks trust vote in Assembly, asks Speaker to set date

Politics

The CM’s speech comes minutes after the SC gave the ruling coalition a breather by maintaining the status quo in the case pertaining to the resignation and disqualification of 10 MLAs.

Theja Ram

Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Friday said that he was ready for a trust vote in light of the recent political crisis in the state. Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar is expected to set a time and date for the exercise. Speaking on the floor of the Assembly, Kumaraswamy said, “Today there is turmoil in our state. Legislators are rebelling. I have not come here to become the CM forever. I know that I can't. In the current situation, I feel it's necessary that I move for a trust vote. I request you to grant me appropriate time for it.” “If the Speaker permits, I am ready to prove majority in the House,” he added. Kumaraswamy's speech comes just minutes after the Supreme Court gave the ruling coalition a much-needed breather. The SC bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi ordered that status quo be maintained in the case pertaining to the resignation and disqualification of 10 members of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. The next hearing in the case is on Tuesday.  It comes as a surprise that the Chief Minister is seeking a trust vote since the Karnataka government is on shaky ground. Sixteen MLAs of the coalition including three JD(S) MLAs and 13 Congress MLAs have so far submitted their resignation letters to the Speaker.  The Speaker is set to meet three MLAs – Anand Singh, Pratapgouda Patil, and Narayan Gowda – on Friday afternoon and has also set up a meeting with two other rebel MLAs Ramalinga Reddy and Gopalaiah on Monday. He is yet to set up meetings with other MLAs and told the Supreme Court that he needs to time examine the resignations of the MLAs.  Further complicating the situation is the fact that the Congress has moved a petition before the Speaker asking him to disqualify two rebel MLAs – Ramesh Jarkiholi and Mahesh Kumathalli.  The rebel MLAs have decided to skip the first day of the monsoon session of the Karnataka Assembly. 

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Coalition gets time: Supreme Court orders status quo on resignation of 10 K'taka MLAs

Politics

The order came after arguments were made by senior advocates on behalf of the rebel MLAs, Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar, and Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy.

Soumya Chatterjee

The Supreme Court on Friday maintained the status quo on the case pertaining to the resignation and disqualification of 10 members of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. The matter will be heard in detail in the next hearing on Tuesday. This effectively gives the ruling coalition in the state a much-needed breather in light of the recent crisis. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi contended that during arguments various issues of interpretation of constitutional provisions were raised. The bench said that the matter needed deep consideration as it was also related to the court's powers while issuing directions to the Speaker. ”Question of judicial interfere also comes up. It also needs to be examined if Speaker needs to decide disqualification first,"  the court said.   The order came after arguments were made by senior advocates on behalf of the rebel MLAs, Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar, and Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy.   The rebel MLAs were represented by former Attorney General of India Mukul Rohatgi, the Speaker by Abhishek Manu Singhvi and the Chief Minister by Rajeev Dhawan. While Mukul Rohatgi urged the court to issue a contempt notice to the Speaker for questioning the SC's orders, the other advocates on behalf of the CM and Speaker questioned on what basis were the 10 MLAs allowed an emergency hearing on grounds of Article 32. Article 32 guarantees judicial remedy to protect fundamental rights. Other contentious issues which were raised where if Constitutional court can issue direction to Speaker to decide on resignations. Dhawan pointed out in one such case the Punjab and Haryana HC had given four months time to the Speaker to decide on the case. He also suggested that the petition by rebel MLAs were "overtly political". This comes after the Speaker on Thursday evening sought time citing his duties and constitutional obligations to decide on the resignation of the 10 rebel MLAs who had approached the Supreme Court. The rebel MLAs had approached the SC alleging the Speaker of deliberately delaying their resignations and acting in a biased manner. The Speaker’s decision to withhold came even when he was directed by the top court to take a decision on the resignations and inform the top court of his order on Friday. The Speaker claimed he needed more time as he had been approached by the Congress seeking disqualification of four Congress MLAs. Meanwhile, Youth Congress Secretary Anil Chacko Joseph in Karnataka and workers of the party approached the court pleading to intervene in the ongoing case claiming that the resignation of these 10 rebel MLAs was to be treated as defections. The CJI has allowed them to file an intervention application.

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IMA scam: SIT arrests moulvi for encouraging people to invest in ponzi scheme

Politics

The SIT in a release said IMA founder Mohammed Mansoor Khan gifted the moulvi a house worth Rs 3 crore in HBR Layout for the same.

TNM Staff

In the latest arrest in the IMA ponzi scheme case, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the multi-crore scandal has arrested one moulvi Asfar Azeezi, of a Shivajinagar mosque, for encouraging people to invest with the tainted company. “The accused had encouraged thousands of men and women to invest in IMA. During prayer meetings, he had defined investing in IMA as a religious responsibility and each Muslim should stand by Khan (Mansoor) and make him one of the biggest business tycoons of Bengaluru,” SIT sources told The Times of India. The SIT in a release said IMA founder Mohammed Mansoor Khan gifted the moulvi a house worth Rs 3 crore in HBR Layout for the same. This arrest comes a couple of days after the police arrested Bengaluru Urban Deputy Commissioner Vijay Shankar (IAS) for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 1.5 crore.   Earlier, the police arrested Assistant Commissioner of the Revenue Department LC Nagaraj, BDA Executive Engineer Kumar, city corporator Syed Mujahid and village accountant Manjunath, for allegedly accepting bribes to the tune of crores from the tainted IMA founder Mansoor Khan. Those arrested include the 12 board directors of the company, while Mansoor Kumar continues to evade arrest and is allegedly hiding in the United Arab Emirates. Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Karnataka High Court ordered issue of notices to the state and central governments, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Serious Fraud Investigation Organisation (SFIO) and the SIT probing the case, on a petition filed by Vijay Shankar. Vijay Shankar has sought a probe by CBI and other central agencies in the case following his arrest. On the other hand, Advocate-General Udaya Holla said there was no need for such an investigation as the offences in the case were carried out within the territory of Karnataka. He also appealed that the case be clubbed with the other IMA case heard by the Division Bench of the HC.  

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No tie-up between BJP and JD(S): Karnataka CM says alliance with Congress strong

Politics

According to JD(S) insiders, it was a BJP ploy to further weaken the ruling Congress-JD(S) alliance which at the moment has suffered a slew of resignations.

TNM Staff

The JD(S) top brass on Thursday night went into damage control mode as they rejected media reports claiming a tie up between the BJP and the party amidst the current political crisis. Late on Thursday evening after Karnataka Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar addressed the media, a section of media claimed that the BJP was offering to form the government with JD(S). The media reports were based on a meeting between JD(S)’s Sa Ra Mahesh who is the Tourism Minister, with BJP Karnataka-in-charge Muralidhar Rao and senior MLA KS Eshwarappa. Commenting on this, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy tweeted, “It is unnecessary to give importance to Tourism Minister Sa. Ra. Mahesh's casual meeting with BJP leaders at the new building of KK guest house, managed by KSTDC which comes under his portfolio..” He added, “Congress -JDS coalition in the state is going strong despite the efforts to destabilize. We are confident and prepared for a smooth and fruitful conduct of legislative sessions.”  Congress -JDS coalition in the state is going strong despite the efforts to destabilize. We are confident and prepared for a smooth and fruitful conduct of legislative sessions. 1/2 — H D Kumaraswamy (@hd_kumaraswamy) July 11, 2019 Congress -JDS coalition in the state is going strong despite the efforts to destabilize. We are confident and prepared for a smooth and fruitful conduct of legislative sessions. 1/2 — H D Kumaraswamy (@hd_kumaraswamy) July 11, 2019   Even the Twitter handle of the JD(S) said, “It is natural for lawmakers and ministers to go to the Kumarakripa Guest House. On this occasion, Mahesh had accidentally met Eshwarappa and Muralidhara Rao on the way. It does not mean any special meaning. The JDS-Congress alliance is strong and will continue to have effective governance.” According to JD(S) insiders, this was a BJP ploy to further weaken the ruling Congress-JD(S) alliance which has recently suffered a slew of resignations. Meanwhile, addressing the press, Speaker Ramesh Kumar said that he needs time to examine the resignation letters submitted by 10 rebel MLAs to ascertain if they are genuine, giving the government some breathing time. On the other hand, the BJP had said that they won’t force a trust vote just yet as the Monsoon Session of the state Assembly will convene on Friday. When it comes to numbers, the Kumaraswamy government is surviving due to the technicality cited by Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar to not decide on the resignation of the 15 rebel MLAs. The strength of the Assembly is 224 including Speaker. With the resignation of 15 MLAs, the quorum will reduce to 211. Following the spate of resignations, the Congress-JD(S) coalition has 101 MLAs while the BJP has 107 MLAs on its side.  The coalition does not have the majority to rule the government if the Speaker accepts the resignations. On the other hand, the Supreme Court will continue to hear the plea filed by the 10 rebel MLAs who alleged that the Speaker was dilly-dallying their resignation and was not acting in an unbiased manner.  

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