Yeddyurappa gets 8 loyal ministers to resign
30 Jun 2012 2:00 AM GMT
The crisis in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Karnataka deepened on Friday, with eight Karnataka minsters considered loyal to the former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa resigning from their posts.
These ministers offered their resignations to Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda. They also carried the resignations of the minister for small scale industries Raju Gowda and the energy minister Shobha Karandlaje, which Gowda refused to accept, saying that they were not present.
'We waited all these days for decision of our high command. We cannot wait any longer. Hence, we have submitted our resignations,' said public works minister C M Udasi, who handed his resignation letter to the chief minister Sadananda Gowda. The public works minister said that eight ministers quit and more ministers would resign after meeting the chief minister.
Yeddyurappa has applied consistent pressure on the central leadership ever since he was forced to step down after the Lokayukta report indicted him in the illegal mining cases in the state. The Yeddyurappa camp has been pushing for Jagadish Shettar as the chief minister of the state.
Â
Dharmendra Pradahan, who is the Karnataka in-charge of the party, said that there is no question of replacing Gowda as of now, as he was doing a good job. He will reach Bangalore on Saturday to talk with both the factions.
Meanwhile, the dissident faction has demanded that the party’s central leadership should take a call on their demand to remove Sadananda Gowda as chief minister. However, sources say that the BJP will take decision on the change of leadership, if any, after the presidential election.
Earlier in the day, the ministers who are loyal to Yeddyurappa held a meeting at the residence of the rural development and panchayati raj minister Jagadish Shettar.
The BJP has 119 MLA's in the 224-member Karnataka assembly.
These ministers offered their resignations to Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda. They also carried the resignations of the minister for small scale industries Raju Gowda and the energy minister Shobha Karandlaje, which Gowda refused to accept, saying that they were not present.
'We waited all these days for decision of our high command. We cannot wait any longer. Hence, we have submitted our resignations,' said public works minister C M Udasi, who handed his resignation letter to the chief minister Sadananda Gowda. The public works minister said that eight ministers quit and more ministers would resign after meeting the chief minister.
Yeddyurappa has applied consistent pressure on the central leadership ever since he was forced to step down after the Lokayukta report indicted him in the illegal mining cases in the state. The Yeddyurappa camp has been pushing for Jagadish Shettar as the chief minister of the state.
Â
Dharmendra Pradahan, who is the Karnataka in-charge of the party, said that there is no question of replacing Gowda as of now, as he was doing a good job. He will reach Bangalore on Saturday to talk with both the factions.
Meanwhile, the dissident faction has demanded that the party’s central leadership should take a call on their demand to remove Sadananda Gowda as chief minister. However, sources say that the BJP will take decision on the change of leadership, if any, after the presidential election.
Earlier in the day, the ministers who are loyal to Yeddyurappa held a meeting at the residence of the rural development and panchayati raj minister Jagadish Shettar.
The BJP has 119 MLA's in the 224-member Karnataka assembly.
Next Story
