After dramatic arrival at Vidhana Soudha, 10 rebel MLAs rushed back to Mumbai

Politics

Almost immediately after meeting the Speaker and tendering their resignations, the MLAs were whisked back to HAL Airport to head back to Mumbai.

TNM Staff

Dramatic scenes unfolded at Vidhana Soudha on Thursday evening as the 10 rebelling MLAs (7 Congress and 3 JD(S)) arrived in Bengaluru to, once again, submit their resignations to Karnataka Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar.  Around 5 pm, Speaker Ramesh Kumar reached his Bengaluru office in Vidhana Soudha. However, the rebel MLAs, who took two chartered flights from Mumbai, reached Bengaluru’s HAL airport around 4.40 pm. Notably, Bengaluru is known for its traffic congestion.  Racing the make the 6 p.m. deadline, visuals showed the MLAs barrelling through Bengaluru traffic on a bus. Although the bus, escorted by a police convoy, was initially stuck in traffic, police cleared the route to allow the MLAs to reach the Speaker's office on time.  The MLAs, finally, reached the Vidhana Soudha premises, five minutes past the deadline of 6 pm. Rebel Congress MLA Byrathi Basavaraj sprinted to the Speaker's office. Some MLAs, too, briskly walked to the Speaker’s office, with their resignation letters, along with their respective personal assistants. The MLAs who entered Speakers office were Ramesh Jarkiholi, Munirathna Naidu, Byrathi Basavaraj, ST Somashekhar, BC Patil, K Gopalaiah, Shivaram Hebbar, Narayana Gowda, AH Vishwanath, Prathap Gouda Patil and Mahesh Kumathalli. Almost immediately after meeting the Speaker and tendering their resignations, the MLAs were whisked back to HAL Airport to head back to Mumbai. Congress leaders have been attempting to pacify the MLAs this week. Congress troubleshooter DK Shivakumar stood outside their hotel in Mumbai earlier this week but the MLAs refused to meet with him and sought police protection.  Earlier on Thursday, the Supreme Court had asked the Speaker to make a decision on the fates of the rebelling MLAs but the end of the day. However, Speaker Ramesh Kumar rejected that instruction and following the MLAs’ departure, he told the media that he had yet to make a decision on the resignations.

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K'taka Speaker buys time, says he will need to examine resignation letters

Politics

The Supreme Court had ordered 10 rebel MLAs to appear before the Speaker regarding their resignations from the Assembly.

TNM Staff

Karnataka Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar said that he needs time to examine the resignation letters submitted by 10 rebel MLAs to ascertain if they are genuine. This comes on the day the Supreme Court had ordered 10 rebel MLAs to appear before the Speaker regarding their resignations from the Assembly. In a press conference held at the Vidhana Soudha after the meeting with the rebel MLAs, Ramesh Kumar said, "The MLAs tendered their resignations today. I will follow the Constitution. I have taken their letters. I need to investigate and hear them individually before making a decision. I have already given appointments to five of them. The MLAs who gave the resignation letters later will be called on later dates." The Supreme Court ordered the 10 rebel MLAs to appear before the Speaker by 6 pm on Thursday. The Speaker was also directed to take a decision on their resignations and inform the top court of his order on Friday.   When asked about the Supreme Court's order, Ramesh Kumar said, "Should I not respect rules or Constitution? I am not under anyone's obligation. I am obligated to come in front of the public of this state." The rebel MLAs, who were staying in a hotel in Mumbai, rushed to Bengaluru by flight on Thursday afternoon. As directed by the apex court, they were escorted from the airport to the Vidhana Soudha by a convoy of police. They arrived at the Vidhana Soudha shortly after 6 pm, just minutes after the deadline set by the Supreme Court. Hundred policemen including Bengaluru commissioner Alok Kumar escorted the rebel MLAs inside. Visuals even showed MLAs Byrathi Basavaraj running to the Speaker’s office at the Vidhana Soudha.    The Supreme Court had earlier in the day refused to give an urgent hearing to the Speaker’s plea to seek more time and vacate the SC order directing him to decide on resignations of 10 rebel MLAs forthwith. The top court said that the Ramesh Kumar’s plea will be heard along with the plea of the 10 rebel MLAs on Friday.  The 10 rebel MLAs who arrived from Mumbai are Pratap Gouda Patil, Ramesh Jarkhiholi, Byrati Basavaraj, BC Patil, ST Somashekar, Arbail Sivaram Hebbar, Mahesh Kumathalli, K Gopalaiah, HD Vishwanath and Narayan Gowda. The rebel MLAs shifted to Mumbai after submitting their resignations on July 6. Efforts by Congress leader DK Shivakumar to reach out to the MLAs and pacify them failed after the legislators sought police protection from Shivakumar and Kumaraswamy. Shivakumar was then taken into preventive custody by the Mumbai police and released at night.  The Speaker had earlier in the week stated that the resignation letters of 8 MLAs were not in the correct format while five others had submitted them in the correct format- Anand Singh, Ramalinga Reddy Pratapgouda Patil, Narayana Gowda and Gopalaiah. According to officials at the Speaker's office, the resignation letters must be hand-written by the MLAs themselves and must not include additional information like the reasons for resigning. Congress Legislature Party (CLP) head Siddaramaiah issued a whip on Thursday to Congress MLAs to attend the first day of the monsoon session of the Karnataka Assembly beginning on Friday failing which the MLAs will be disqualified under the anti-defection law.  The JD(S) has filed a petition before the Speaker to disqualify the three rebel MLAs from its party while the Congress is yet to file a petition seeking a disqualification against its rebel MLAs. The Congress had earlier filed a petition before the Speaker to disqualify Ramesh Jarkiholi and Mahesh Kumatahalli. The party is yet to file a fresh petition against the other rebel MLAs. 

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‘BJP won’t push for trust vote in Assembly’: Karnataka MLA Ashoka

Politics

This comes soon after the Karnataka Cabinet announced that a Finance Bill will be tabled in the Assembly on Friday.

TNM Staff

Amidst the on-going political crisis in Karnataka, former Deputy Chief Minister and senior BJP MLA R Ashoka on Thursday said that the party won’t push for a trust vote in the Assembly as the Monsoon session begins on Friday. “Tomorrow we will expose how this government does not have the majority. The CM is accusing the media of spreading fake news. So tomorrow, the media and the CM will know the truth,” he told reporters outside the state Assembly. Stating that the BJP will neither push for forming a government nor a trust vote, Ashoka said, “We will protest in the Assembly because the government is dead. The development in the state has been crippled. We are reeling from drought and the government has not done anything to tackle it. We have watched the trailer. Now we will watch the film.” This comes soon after the Karnataka Cabinet met and announced that they will table a Finance Bill in the Assembly on Friday. Speaking to reporters following the meeting, Krishna Byre Gowda, who is the Rural Development Minister, said, “We will table the Finance Bill tomorrow (Friday). The whip will be issued on Thursday. The Opposition has every right to ask for counting of votes for the Finance Bill. Let them do it. If the Opposition wants, they can move a no-confidence motion as well. We will prove the majority.” He added, “If the Finance bill is not passed, then it will automatically mean that the government does not have the majority.” Meanwhile, with the Supreme Court refusing to give an urgent hearing to Speaker Ramesh Kumar’s plea, he is expected to decide the resignation of the 15 MLAs of the ruling coalition by the end of Thursday. The Speaker had filed a petition on Thursday to seek more time and vacate the SC order directing him to decide on resignations of 10 rebel MLAs forthwith. 

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Amidst political uncertainty, Kumaraswamy govt gives nod to multiple infra projects

Politics

Krishna Byre Gowda, who is the Rural Development Minister, said the government will be able to prove a majority if a no-confidence motion is moved.

TNM Staff

The Karnataka cabinet headed by Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Thursday green lit multiple infrastructural projects amidst the recent power crisis in the state that has even reached the Supreme Court. The cabinet appeared confident of holding on to power, though Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar was asked by the court to decide on the resignation of the rebel MLAs of the ruling combine.  Speaking to reporters following the meeting, Krishna Byre Gowda, who is the Rural Development Minister, said, “We will table the finance bill tomorrow. Party whip will be issued today. The opposition has every right to ask for counting of votes for the finance bill. Let them do it. If the opposition wants they can move a no-confidence motion as well. We will prove the majority.” He added, “If the finance bill is not passed, then it will automatically mean that the government does not have the majority.” Speaking on the Jindal issue, Byre Gowda said, “The cabinet sub committee has not taken any decisions regarding Jindal land deal. The committee has asked for all documents and correspondence related to the issue. It is still being reviewed and no decisions have been made.” In one of the major decisions, the cabinet has decided to withdraw the amendment of the Karnataka Municipal Acts, 2013 which was pending before the Centre for more than three years. The state government will now look into the BS Patil committee recommendations for alternatives based on which the Bill was initially passed.  Whitetopping works as part of the Nava Bengaluru scheme -- the work for existing tenders that were already issued -- will go as per schedule. For three different whitetopping projects throughout the city, they are allocated Rs 147 crore, Rs 211 crore and Rs 207 crore respectively. The cabinet has approved a project to supply treated water from Hebbal Nagavara valley to 24 lakes in Bagepalli at the cost of Rs 70 crore and another Rs 50 crore has been allocated for construction of underground drainage system and STP in the areas surrounding Hesarghatta and TG Halli lakes to stop entry of untreated sewage into these water bodies. Rs 30 cr for the clean up of Chikkabanavara lake, and Rs 80 crore for the clean up of Ganigarahalli lake has been allocated. Other than this, the cabinet also approved Rs 750 crore for construction of canal on right bank under upper Krishna project phase 2.   

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White House kills drug rebate rule

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Karnataka crisis: SC refuses urgent hearing of Speaker's petition

Politics

The Speaker will now have to abide by the apex court’s order earlier in the day, to decide on the resignation of the rebel MLAs by midnight.

TNM Staff

In continuance with the hectic parleys regarding the political crisis in Bengaluru, the Supreme Court refused to hear an urgent petition filed by Karnataka Speaker KR Rakesh Kumar on Thursday afternoon. However, the top court said that the Ramesh Kumar’s plea will be heard along with the plea of the 10 rebel MLAs. Ramesh Kumar approached the apex court to seek more time and vacate the SC order directing him to decide on resignations of 10 rebel MLAs forthwith, and latest by 12 midnight, after they appear before him at 6 pm. The Speaker also said he is also seized of the disqualification proceedings initiated against the rebel MLAs and that too takes time available with him, which makes it difficult to forthwith decide the voluntary nature of resignations that would require a proper inquiry. With this, the 10 rebel MLAs of the ruling coalition will continue with their journey back to Bengaluru on a chartered flight from Mumbai. They will appear before the Speaker and make themselves heard at 6 pm as directed by the SC earlier in the day. The top court has ordered the Speaker to grant them an audience where they will be able to present their resignations. The Speaker will have to pass an order on the plea of resignations, which will then be conveyed to the Supreme Court on Friday.  The decision was made by the SC as it was hearing a petition filed by the 10 rebel MLAs – Pratap Gouda Patil, Ramesh Jarkhiholi, Byrati Basavaraj, BC Patil, ST Somashekar, Arbail Sivaram Hebbar, Mahesh Kumathalli, K Gopalaiah, HD Vishwanath and Narayan Gowda – seeking the SC to direct the Speaker accept their resignations. At present, the Congress-JD(S) coalition has just 101 MLAs in the Assembly, including the Speaker and BSP MLA Mahesh. The BJP has 107 legislators including independent MLA H Nagesh and KPJP MLA R Sankar. The majority mark is 105. However, the coalition hopes that they will be able to convince at least a few MLAs to take back their resignations. With Assembly Speaker Ramesh Kumar saying that the MLAs have to come before him personally to submit their resignations, the Congress hopes that once these MLAs reach Bengaluru, they will be able to meet and convince them. On the other hand, the Congress had also sought disqualification of these warring MLAs on grounds of anti-party activities and has also sought that they be debarred from contesting for elections for six years.

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Congress’ Ramalinga Reddy reconsidering resignation? Says he has time till Monday

Politics

In an exclusive interaction with TNM, veteran Congress leader and rebel MLA Ramalinga Reddy hinted that he might withdraw his resignation.

Prajwal Bhat

Senior Congress leader and seven-time Bengaluru MLA Ramalinga Reddy on Thursday said that he may reconsider his decision to resign as MLA before he is set to appear before the Speaker on Monday.  Speaking to TNM at his office in Bengaluru, Ramalinga Reddy said, "There is time till July 15. I don't want to speak about politics till then. All the time for speaking is over and I have expressed my problems to the senior leadership of the Congress." He said that he will closely follow the political developments in the state before his meeting with Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar on Monday, the day allotted to him to present his resignation. Reddy had tendered his resignation on July 6 days after over not being inducted into the Kumaraswamy cabinet. The seven-time MLA is the senior most leader from Congress in Bengaluru and was key to the party convincing independents and JD(S) members in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) elections in 2015.   However, he was overlooked for a ministerial position when the coalition government was formed in May 2018. "Other senior leaders were given ministerial positions but I was overlooked not only when the government was formed but even recently when the independent MLAs were inducted," he said. Independent MLAs H Nagesh and R Shankar were inducted into the cabinet in June. The duo has, however, since withdrawn their support for the Congress and pledged their support for the BJP.  Sources told TNM that Ramalinga Reddy was offered the post of Bengaluru Development Minister earlier in the week and later, the post of Deputy Chief Minister. Both positions are currently held by G Parameshwara.  However, Ramalinga Reddy also told TNM, "I have not asked for any ministerial positions now. I have made that clear.” Ramalinga Reddy is among 16 Congress MLAs who have submitted their resignation papers to the Speaker. But Ramalinga chooses to distance himself from the rebel MLAs who are currently holed up in a hotel in Mumbai. "I have not gone to court or gone away from Bengaluru. I am in my office and I can be contacted at any time. I am in touch with KC Venugopal, Mallikarjun Kharge and even Kumaraswamy. I have also spoken to BJP leaders but this decision is not influenced by the BJP," he told TNM further.  "I have worked with Congress for decades. I am only resigning as an MLA and not leaving the Congress party," he added. With rebel MLAs in Mumbai indicating that they are firm on their decision to resign as MLAs, the Congress could turn to its veteran from Bengaluru to try and save the government. The 10 MLAs, who had approached the Supreme Court, have been ordered to appear before the Speaker by 6pm on Thursday and present their resignations. The Speaker has been directed to come out with a decision on their resignations and present his order to the top court on Friday.

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