Karnataka political crisis: BS Yeddyurappa distances himself from developments in Congress-JD(S) coalition, says will 'wait and see'

Bengaluru: As fresh trouble has gripped the ruling Janata Dal (Secular)-Congress coalition with the resignation of 11 lawmakers, senior BJP leader BS Yeddyurappa on Sunday said he is not related to the developments in any way. Grappling with the crumbling coalition, senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, on the other hand, responded to the resignation of party strongman Ramalinga Reddy stating that his grievances will be looked into. Yeddyurappa said, “I am going to Tumkur and I will come back at 4 pm. You know about the political developments. Let’s wait and see. I do not want to answer to what HD Kumaraswamy and Siddaramaiah say. I am nowhere related to this.”

BS Yeddyurappa, BJP in Bengaluru, #Karnataka : I am going to Tumkur and I will come back at 4 pm. You know about the political developments. Let's wait and see. I don't want to answer to what HD Kumaraswamy and Siddaramaiah say. I am nowhere related to this. pic.twitter.com/vYNbvKRcJQ

— ANI (@ANI) July 7, 2019

Kharge said that he wants the alliance to run smoothly in the state. On being asked about are reports about the possibility of him being made the state’s chief minister, Kharge said, “I do not know. I want this alliance government to continue. We want that this should go on smoothly. These are all flimsy information being fed to the press just to divide us.” Responding to Ramalinga Reddy’s resignation, he said, “Ramalinga Reddy ji is a senior leader and a Congressman. For long he has been holding Congress’s fort in Bengaluru. Let us see what are his grievances and what we can do.” The 13 month-old Karnataka coalition government of JD(S) and Congress slumped into crisis following the resignation of their 11 MLAs from the membership of the state Assembly on Saturday. JD(S) MLA H Vishwanath had on Saturday said that 14 MLAs have jointly tendered their resignations to Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar and requested him to accept them. But, the Speaker has not yet accepted their resignations. With the dramatic turn of events, the state government appears to have fallen into a minority forcing Chief Minister Kumaraswamy, who is in the US, to cut short his visit. He is expected to fly back on Sunday. Former chief minister and Congress leader Siddaramaiah late on Saturday evening held a meeting with the party MLAs where he is believed to have discussed, among other things, the current political situation in the state. The meeting took place at his house. The strength of the ruling coalition in Karnataka has come down to 105, which is eight short of the half-way mark of 113. Congress MLAs Anand Singh and Ramesh Jarkiholi resigned from the government earlier this week. Those MLAs who resigned from the Assembly include BC Patil, H Vishwanath, Narayan Gowda, S Hebbar, Mahesh Kumatalli, Gopalayya, Ramesh Jharkiholi, and Pratap Gowda Patil. The dissident MLAs late on Saturday arrived in Mumbai and are staying at a hotel.