No political crisis at all in Karnataka: CM Yediyurappa
Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Friday ruled out any political crisis, even as the rumblings within the ruling BJP have come out in the open during the visit of its national General Secretary in-charge of the State Arun Singh, amid speculations in some quarters about his replacement.
The Chief Minister said that the BJP high command will decide on action against party MLC A H Vishwanath for his recent "open statements," as he rubbished as "baseless" his allegations against his younger son and party vice-president B Y Vijayendra of interference in administration and "kickbacks" in an irrigation project.
"There is no political crisis at all...what is happening is just because one or two people (legislators) are saying something in the media, it is creating misunderstanding...these one or two people speaking against me is not new, they have been doing it since the beginning and it is getting highlighted," Yediyurappa said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, about 60 legislators have met national General Secretary Arun Singh on Thursday, but these one or two people who are making statements were not even allowed to meet him.
"There is no confusion or crisis, we are all together and united, and are focusing on the development work. None of my cabinet colleagues are disturbed by any of these things...
we will try and talk to one or two people who are involved in such activities, and try to resolve things," he added.
Speculations have been rife for some time now that a section of the ruling BJP is trying to push for unseating Yediyurappa, despite Singh ruling out replacing the Chief Minister and asserting that the 78-year old Lingayat strong man will continue in the top post.
MLA from Hubli-Dharwad West Arvind Bellad and Vijayapura MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal who are said to be from the faction seeking Yediyurappa's replacement did not meet Singh on Thursday.
However, Tourism Minister C P Yogeshwar, who is also reportedly disgruntled, held discussions with him.
Not willing to comment on Vishwanath's statements, Yediyurappa said, the high command will decide on what action should be taken against him.
Regarding his allegation against his son and kickbacks in an irrigation project, the CM said, "these are all baseless allegations and the Irrigation Department Secretary will clarify everything...unnecessarily such allegations are being made, there is no basis for it. It is being done for political reasons."
Vishwanath has openly demanded Yediyurappa's ouster, and levelled allegations of corruption and interference in administration against Vijayendra.
This has resulted in a slugfest, as it elicited sharp reactions from the faction supporting the CM, especially his political secretaries M P Renukacharya and S R Vishwanath.
To add to this, allegations of phone-tapping and conspiracy to fix him by Bellad, had caused further embarrassment to the party and the government.
Amid speculations about replacing him, Yediyurappa had earlier said that he will continue in the top post as long as the BJP high command has confidence in him, but had subsequently asserted that there was no confusion on the issue of leadership and that he will work for the development of the state during the remaining two years of the term.
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Heavy rain, hailstorms likely to lash Uttarakhand on Tuesday; IMD issues warning
Dehradun/Pithoragarh (PTI): The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning for heavy rain and hailstorms across several districts of Uttarakhand on Tuesday, as temperatures remained markedly below normal in the region.
Heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places in Dehradun, Haridwar, Tehri, Pauri, Nainital, Champawat, and Udham Singh Nagar districts. Most places across all districts are expected to receive light to moderate rain or thunderstorms, while higher reaches are likely to witness snowfall, officials said on Monday.
The weather department warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, hail and intense spells of rain in six districts, including Dehradun and Nainital. Gusty winds with speeds reaching 40-50 kmph are also expected at isolated locations in these areas and other hilly districts.
In the state capital, Dehradun, the sky is forecast to remain partly cloudy with light rain and thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds of 30-40 kmph.
The maximum and minimum temperatures in the city are expected to hover around 31 degrees Celsius and 19 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Maximum temperatures during the past 24 hours remained markedly below normal in the hills and appreciably below normal in the plains. While no significant change in temperature is expected over the next 2-3 days, the IMD predicts a rise of 3-5 degrees Celsius during the subsequent 3-4 days.
Rainfall was recorded in several areas after 8.30 am today, with Ramnagar receiving 31.5 mm and Nainital recording 26.5 mm. Other areas, including Pithoragarh, Khatima and Champawat, also reported moderate precipitation.
Authorities have stopped a batch of 36 Adi Kailash pilgrims at the Dharchula base camp and placed the high-altitude yatra route on high alert following heavy rains and hailstorms in the district on Monday.
Dharchula SDM Ashish Joshi said the pilgrimage was halted due to adverse weather conditions. The issuance of new inner-line passes has been suspended until the weather normalises.
With 1,700 passes issued so far, pilgrims already at higher camps are being monitored for safety, the official added.
