BJP leader B.S. Yeddyurappa with party leader Ananth Kumar during their sit-in protest against the delay in invitation for forming the government in Bangalore
on Sunday. — PTI photo |
Bangalore, November 4
In the continuing game of political brinkmanship in Karnataka, former Chief Minister H.D.Kumaraswamy today announced that his party would give “unconditional” support to the BJP to form a government in the state.
The BJP, meanwhile, called off the dharna being staged by it in the city centre following pressure from the JD (S), which did not join in.
According to sources, a hardening of stance by the BJP central leadership was responsible for Kumaraswamy’s volte face in withdrawing the 12-point demand charter submitted by his father H.D.Deve Gowda to BJP party president Rajnath Singh. He, however, said the adverse publicity in the media was responsible for this change of stand rather than anything else.
Referring to the charter of demands, Kumaraswmay said they were in the nature of suggestions. “Is there any suggestion in our 12-point MOU which cannot be implemented”, he said, adding that the party had only highlighted the necessity to sort out issues in the light of the experience gained while running the coalition government in league with the BJP earlier.
The former Chief Minister defended his decision not to take part in the sit-in dharna organised by the BJP on the MG road in the city or parade party legislators before President Pratibha Patil as mooted by the saffron party.
He said the remarks made by him after meeting Governor Rameshwar
Thakur last evening had been quoted out of context. I only reiterated the Governor’s position that it was pointless to inconvenience thousands of people by holding a dharna in the city centre, he added.
The BJP, on its part, while ending the dharna being organised by it this evening, has now decided to go in for “save democracy” yatra from tomorrow. The yatra will be launched from Kolar, following which public meetings will be held on its way to Bangalore in Devanhalli, Chikkaballapur and Doddaballapur.
A delegation of the party also called on the Governor to explain the reason why it had undertaken a dharna to press for the formation of a coalition government led by it. The delegation, consisting of party national general secretary H. Ananthkumar and state president D.V. Sadanand Gowda, appealed to the Governor to send his final report on the political situation in the state to the Centre as soon as possible. After the meeting, Ananthkumar told newsmen that the Governor had assured the delegation that he would submit his report as per the constitutional provisions.
Meanwhile, the Congress has also decided to enter the political space in an active way in the state by launching a “Jan Andolan” against the “opportunistic politics” of the BJP-JD (S) combine. Congress pradesh president Mallikarjun Kharge claimed that the movement, which would be launched tomorrow by union minister Prithiviraj Chavan, would highlight the “rampant corruption” of the previous JD (S) - BJP government. The andolan will be cover the entire state in the coming days, Kharge added.
