Karnataka: Speaker Pushes Trust Vote to Monday
BANGALURU : Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala on Friday issued a second deadline to Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy to complete the trust vote and decide the fate of the ruling Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition in the state.
Kumaraswamy has been directed to get done with the floor test by 6pm. Earlier, the House was adjourned till 3pm after the first deadline of 1.30 pm lapsed without the completion of the vote of no-confidence. The Congress raised objections to the governor’s deadline, which led to a ruckus in the Vidhan Soudha.
During the Assembly proceedings, Kumaraswamy asked the BJP MLAs what was the hurry to hold the trust vote and asked why they could not wait until early next week to form the government. He requested them to have a discussion even as Opposition leaders were up in arms against the alliance government over the delay in trust vote.
BJP Karnataka President,BS Yeddyurappa said Monday will be the last day for HD Kumaraswamy govt, they don’t have numbers & they aren’t allowing the people who have numbers to form govt. We are 106 members totally. SC has said MLAs who are in Mumbai can’t be forced to attend session.
Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar is the man of the week and all eyes have been on him. A six-time MLA, this is the second time in 25 years that Kumar has held the coveted post of the speaker. His decision to ignore “instructions” sent by Governor Vajubhai Vala to complete the floor test at the earliest has led to a direct clash between the two top constitutional functionaries in the state.
Earlier in the day, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said the governor is converting the Raj Bhavan into BJP office.
Karnataka’s Congress-Janata Dal Secular coalition won a two-day breather as the assembly was adjourned despite Governor Vajubhai Vala asking for a trust vote today, hours after the government ignored his previous deadline of 1:30 pm.
“Kindly prove your majority by the end of today,” Governor Vajubhai Vala wrote in his second letter since yesterday to Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy. The chief minister said: “The second love letter has hurt me.” But Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar called it a day after marathon speeches by coalition leaders and despite the BJP’s BS Yeddyurappa saying his lawmakers would wait for a vote even if speeches went on till midnight.
Following are the top 10 developments in this big story:
The coalition, which is in danger of losing power after multiple resignations, says the Governor cannot ask for a test of strength when the government has asked the Supreme Court for a clarification on an order that allowed rebel lawmakers to skip the house in defiance of a party whip.
In his second letter, the governor said detailed debates and discussions were held only to delay the floor test. “When the allegations of horse-trading are widely made and I am receiving many such complaints, it is constitutionally imperative that the floor test be completed without any delay and today itself,” he wrote.
Mr Kumaraswamy, in a long speech in the Assembly, accused the opposition BJP of offering “Rs. 40-50 crore” to lawmakers to switch sides. In his second statement in two days, he warned the BJP of Judgement Day. “…the only consolation is that there is coming a day when all will give an account of their lives to God,” he said.
As Mr Yeddyurappa insisted on an immediate trust vote, Mr Kumaraswamy said: “After 14 months (in power), we have come to the final stage. Let’s have a discussion. You can still form government. Nothing urgent. You can do it on Monday or Tuesday also. I am not going to misuse power.”
The coalition also alleged that the governor was under pressure to recommend president’s rule. Top central government sources rubbished the allegation, saying there was “no question” of central rule in Karnataka. “How long can they avoid a trust vote? One week to two weeks? We are watching the situation,” said the sources.
In protest against the Speaker’s decision to end proceedings without a trust vote yesterday, BJP lawmakers had spent the night in the assembly, eating dinner and sleeping on the floor of the house.
The Supreme Court has left it to the speaker to decide on the resignations of the rebel lawmakers. At the same time, the court said on Wednesday that the rebels cannot be forced to attend the assembly, prompting the coalition to seek a clarification on whether or not they can be disqualified for defying a whip.
Sixteen legislators – 13 from the Congress and three from JDS – have resigned in the last two weeks, and two independent legislators have withdrawn their support to the coalition government. One Congress rebel, Ramalinga Reddy, appears to have returned.
The ruling coalition had 118 members in the 224-member assembly. If the resignations of the 15 legislators who approached the Supreme Court are accepted, the government will be left with 101 members. With the support of the two independents, the opposition BJP has 107 legislators, which is two more than the majority mark of 105.
(With Inputs from Bangaluru).
