Karnataka Assembly Floor Test LATEST Updates: Two rebel Congress MLAs, Ramesh Jarkhiholi and Mahesh Kumathalli, who were disqualified by the ex-Karnataka Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar on 25 July, have approached the Supreme Court challenging their disqualification. In the petition to the apex court, they called Kumar decision “wholly illegal, arbitrary and mala fide”.
The petition also mentions that Kumar had "accepted the resignation of another MLA — Dr Umesh Jadhav — in April this year. This shows that pendency of disqualification proceedings against an MLA was not a bar to the acceptance of his resignation, the petition contends," Bar and Bench reported.
Thanking the senior leaders of the Karnataka Assembly after he submitted his resignation as the Speaker on Monday, KR Ramesh Kumar also said that elections were "the root of the corruption in the country".
He said, "I request the House to discuss the issue of electoral reforms and send a resolution to the Parliament. We must also think of political parties."
Congress leader Siddaramaiah in the debate on the trust vote in the Karnataka Assembly on Monday said that it was "unfortunate" that BS Yediyurappa had "never been chief minister with the people's mandate".
"Where is the mandate? You didn't have it in 2008, 2018 or even now. When he took oath there were 222 MLAs in House, where did BJP have 112 MLAs for majority? They had 105 seats. That is not a mandate."
He added, "We hope you (BS Yediyurappa) will be the chief minister but there is no guarantee of that. You are with the rebels, can you give a stable government? It's impossible!"
Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa won the trust vote in the Karnataka Assembly on Monday.
Senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah addressed the Karnataka Assembly after Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa moved a confidence motion on the BJP government in the House on Monday.
He said, "We discussed HD Kumaraswamy's confidence motion over four days. I too participated in that and I don't wish to speak about it. I could've spoken about circumstances under which Yediyurappa has become the chief minister. I wish him well and welcome his assurance that he'll work for people."
"We're elected to work for the people and we must try to do that. I attempted this as the chief minister and so did HD Kumaraswamy. Yediyurappa said the administration has come to a stand-still and he wants to rectify that. It wasn't the case. In the coalition, we worked towards bringing to force the common minimum program."
Siddaramaiah concluded, "I oppose this confidence motion because this government is unconstitutional and immoral."
Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa moved the confidence motion on his government in the Karnataka Assembly on Monday. Making a pitch to the Opposition led by former coalition partners Congress and JD(S), he said, "When Siddaramaiah and HD Kumaraswamy were chief ministers, they didn't indulge in vindictive politics. The administration has failed and we'll set it right. I assure the House that we won't indulge in vindictive politics either. I believe in forget and forgive."
He added, "Forget and forgive is something I believe in. I love the people who oppose me as well. I want to thank Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and JP Nadda."
Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Monday tweeted regarding the disqualifications of the Congress and JD(S) rebel MLAs and questioned the BJP's objections to Karnataka Speaker KR Ramesh's decision to suspend the legislators. The saffron party called the Speaker's move "violative" of the law on Sunday.
Siddaramaiah asked why the BJP was having "heartburn" over the disqualifications of Congress and JD(S) MLAs. "Why should BJP have heartburn if the Congress and JD(S) parties disqualify party legislators? Why this concern over them?
He added, "The Congress and JD(S) have suffered the loss of power. The defeated legislators are disadvantaged and incapacitated. The BJP benefited from all this. It is time for unqualified lawmakers to wake up."
The Congress legislative party (CLP) meeting, chaired by senior party leader Siddaramaiah, has begun at the Vidhana Soudha ahead of the confidence motion to be moved by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Monday.
Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president Dinesh Gundu Rao, KJ George, Priyank Kharge, MB Patil, Eshwar Khandre and other Congress MLAs are also present.
Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa visited the Sri Bala Vera Anjaneya temple in Bengaluru on Monday morning, ahead of the confidence motion on his government in the Karnataka Assembly.
Five of the rebel Congress MLAs who were disqualified by Karnataka Speaker on Sunday also returned to Bengaluru on Monday morning ahead of the anticipated confidence motion. The MLAs, who have returned after camping out in a Mumbai hotel for almost a month, include Byrathi Basavaraj, MTB Nagaraj, ST Somashekhar.
Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa on Sunday said that he would move the confidence motion in the Vidhana Soudha on Monday. He was briefing media persons after presiding over the BJP's Legislative Party meeting in the state.
"Today in our Legislative Party meeting we have discussed tomorrow's programme in the Assembly in detail. Tomorrow I will move the confidence motion in the House. After that I will introduce the finance bill as well," he said. "I think both the Congress and the JDS are going to support us in this matter," he added.
In a bid to keep its flock intact, the Karnataka BJP decided to lodge its MLAs at the hotel Chancery Pavilion on Sunday night, just ahead of the vote of confidence in Vidhana Soudha.
The BJP's legislative party meeting took place late on Sunday evening at the hotel and was chaired by Yediyurappa. After the meeting concluded, the BJP announced its decision to keep its lawmakers at the hotel for the night.
Briefing about the meeting, Ravi Kumar, BJP's state unit secretary, said: "Apart from our 105 MLAs, we have also the support of one or two independent MLAs. We are confident of proving our majority on the floor of Assembly." He added, "The BJP will also request the JD(S) and the Congress to support in getting the finance bill passed."
"Many topics were discussed in the meeting. We have to prove the majority tomorrow. So all MLAs were called in for the meeting," said Sriramulu, BJP MLA. The new BJP government is scheduled to face the vote of confidence in the House on Monday, for which the session is being convened.
In a significant move, Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar on Sunday disqualified, with immediate effect, 14 rebel ex-MLAs, days after the Congress-JD(S) government collapsed after losing the confidence motion. This is in addition to the three dissident MLAs he had disqualified last week.
Yediyurappa had taken charge as chief minister on Friday, hours after he was sworn in by Governor Vajubhai Vala. Ahead of the vote of confidence in the Legislative Assembly, Commissioner of Police Alok Kumar on Saturday issued a prohibitory order to impose Section 144 within a two-kilometre radius of the Vidhana Soudha from 6 am on 29 July to midnight of 30 July.
Section 144 prohibits an assembly of more than four people in an area.
