AMN / BENGALURU

Karnataka BJP state President B S Yeddyurappa has urged Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy to resign as 16 MLAs have withdrawn support to his Government. Speaking to the media persons on the side-lines of a dharna being held by the party in Bengaluru today, he said 14 Congress and JD(S) MLAs and two Independents have withdrawn their support.

Yeddyurappa informed that they will meet the Governor and ask him to intervene and seek the Chief Minister’s resignation. A BJP delegation will also meet the Speaker Ramesh Kumar in the afternoon to urge him to accept the resignation letters submitted to him.

Taking strong exception to Congress leader D K Shivakumar laying seize to the Mumbai hotel where rebels are staying, Yeddyurappa said his strong arm tactics will not work now. Speaking on the legislative Assembly session starting from Friday, he said this Government cannot call for a session as it has lost majority.

10 rebel Congress, JD(S) MLAs moves SC

The political crisis in Karnataka deepens today as 10 rebel Congress and JD(S) MLAs moved to the Supreme Court with a plea alleging that the state Assembly Speaker has been deliberately not accepting their resignations.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi took note of the submission of senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the rebel MLAs, and assured that it will see whether their petition can be listed for an urgent hearing tomorrow.

The senior lawyer said these lawmakers have already resigned from their membership of the assembly and wanted to contest fresh elections. The state Assembly Speaker had held on Tuesday that the resignations of nine out of 14 rebel MLAs were not in order.