Bengaluru / Karnataka Legislature set to meet today amid uncertainty

The sessions of the State Legislature in the recent past have not been without drama, but the one commencing from Friday promises to be marked by more of it than the usual staple between the governing coalition (Congress and JD-S) and the Opposition BJP. While the former is struggling to hang on despite the number of MLAs plummeting — 100 on last count — with a slew of resignations, the latter is bent on bringing down the government, arguing that it has been reduced to a minority.

The session begins amid whips issued by the Congress and the JD(S) to its legislators to attend the proceedings of the House without fail and Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar seeking more time to scrutinise the resignation letters of the 16 MLAs (13 from the Congress and three from the JD-S). These legislators, who were facing the threat of disqualification, appeared before the Speaker on Thursday as per the directions of the Supreme Court to resubmit their resignation letters. The Speaker said he cannot decide on them in a hurry, making their future uncertain.

Will they, won’t they?

As 20 MLAs had skipped the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Monday, it would be interesting to watch whether a group of them, allegedly staying at a hotel in Mumbai at the behest of the BJP since Saturday last, would attend the session or not on Friday. The whip issued by Ganesh Hukkeri (Congress) is virtually a warning to the MLAs that they would be disqualified under the Anti-Defection Law if they skipped the legislature proceedings.

Though the Lower House listed its Friday’s agenda as “official” business, the House is unlikely to run smoothly, given the charged political atmosphere in the State. Members of the governing and Opposition parties are expected to indulge in sloganeering and blame each other for the ongoing political stalemate, unless the House is adjourned after the obituary reference.

Meanwhile, leaders of the coalition, at both the State and national level, have been exploring options before them to save the 13-month-old government. The Cabinet, which met on Thursday, held detailed discussions on the political crisis and kinds of strategies to be adopted during the session.

Pledge to fight

Unlike in the previous cases, the Cabinet took note of the seriousness of the political crisis this time and all Ministers pledged to fight collectively to save the government.

“This is the BJP’s sixth attempt to topple the government in the last one year and we all have explored various options before us,” Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Krishna Byre Gowda said.

Meanwhile, the government, whose actions are being closely monitored by Governor Vajubhai R. Vala, seems to be in no hurry on moving a trust motion on the floor of the House. Instead, it has decided to face a no-confidence motion from the BJP if it contemplates such a move. The BJP is clearly in a hurry to secure power, allegedly by luring coalition MLAs. “If necessary, we will move the confidence motion,” Mr. Gowda said.

The government has expressed its readiness to follow all directions/advices given by the Governor in accordance with the Constitution. The Opposition BJP is expected to exercise its rights to seek a division of votes on Bills or the Finance Bill moved by the government in the House.

Given the complex political scenario, the session may end by next week after passing the Finance Bill without discussion. In March, amid protests by the BJP, the House passed the vote on account for the first four months of the financial year without a debate.