Oppn upbeat over 'twist' in K'taka tale

NEW DELHI: The collapse of the three-day-old BJP government in Karnataka, without facing a floor test in the Assembly on Saturday, drew sharp reactions from prominent opposition leaders, including West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and BSP supremo Mayawati.

As the news of Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa's resignation without facing the floor test in Karnataka poured in, Banerjee, who is the Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief, said it was a "victory of the regional front" and of democracy.

"Democracy wins. Congratulations Karnataka. Congratulations DeveGowda Ji, Kumaraswamy Ji, Congress and others. Victory of the 'regional' front (sic)," she tweeted.

Banerjee, who had earlier mooted the idea of a federal front of regional parties, has been in touch with prominent opposition leaders after the Karnataka Assembly poll results threw up a fractured verdict.

She had spoken to former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, his son H D Kumaraswamy, who is the Congress-JD(S) nominee for the chief minister's post, and her Andhra Pradesh counterpart, N Chandrababu Naidu, among others.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav also took to Twitter soon after Yeddyurappa announced his decision to resign as the Karnataka chief minister.

"Truth can never be defeated! Truth will always defeat a lie or liar! #KarnatakaFloorTest," the younger son of party chief Lalu Prasad wrote on the microblogging website.

All those who believe in democracy are happy, said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, whose Telugu Desam Party exited the NDA in March.

BJP's attempts to subvert democracy have miserably failed in Karnataka. India's judiciary has risen to the occasion and has safeguarded our democracy, said Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.

"This is a big blow for them(BJP), and I think what they had been planning all along for 2019 has failed, they will now have to rethink and alter their strategies," said BSP supremo Mayawati.