CM Kumaraswamy meets 3 rebel Congress MLAs; tries to mollify them
Bengaluru, Mar 6: Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy Wednesday met three rebel Congress MLAs in an apparent bid to prevent any possible threat to the coalition government headed by him.
In the meeting aimed at pacifying Ramesh Jarkiholi, Nagendra and Mahesh Kumathalli, Kumaraswamy requested them not to take any decision in haste, sources said.
He asked them not to resign from the Congress and assured them of "some positive things" in the days to come, they said.
Kumaraswamy's meeting with the MLAs came on a day when Umesh Jadhav, another rebel Congress MLA, joined the BJP at Kalaburagi, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally.
According to sources, the coalition leaders are worried about the three MLAs too jumping ship to join BJP any time as part of the saffron party's alleged plan to destabilise the government in Karnataka.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Kumaraswamy said he had gone to the house of an MLA (Jarkiholi) for breakfast during which various issues were discussed.
"What development has happened to pacify? I had come to have breakfast...there is no need to come here to sort out any major issue.
They are all together and I have been saying it since the beginning. They are in constant touch with me and there are no issues," he said.
Stating that there were no issues even now, he said, "We discussed several matters...on the issue of development of their constituencies and districts. Other than that, no political discussions took place."
Asked about Umesh Jadhav's resignation and joining the BJP, the Chief Minister said he had nothing to do with it as he was never in touch with him.
"Since the beginning, my confidence was in Ramesh Jarkiholi, Nagendra and Mahesh Kumathali; they were in constant touch with me for the last four months and we had discussions on several issues...
Locally there are some issues and Congress leaders are capable enough to solve them."
BJP sources said Jadhav was likely to be the party's Lok Sabha candidate for Gulbarga to challenge Congress veteran Mallikarjun Kharge, a nine-time MLA and two-term Lok Sabha member, who has never tasted electoral defeat.
Jadhav had Monday submitted his resignation from the Assembly to the Speaker, Ramesh Kumar.
Asked whether BJP was still in touch with MLAs, the Chief Minister said, "BJP people are in touch with everyone, including me. Why do you take it seriously?"
Pointing to the recent meeting of BJP chief B S Yeddyurappa and CLP leader Siddaramaiah, he said, "Can we add a different colour to it? All of us are friends.
In BJP also there will be friends and may talk and according to me there is no need to add a political colour to it."
The Congress has petitioned the Speaker, seeking disqualification of Jadhav, along with Ramesh Jarkiholi, B Nagendra and Mahesh Kumathali under the anti-defection law.
The four MLAs had kept the party on tenterhooks for several weeks, defying its whip twice to attend the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meetings on January 18 and February 8 and had skipped the early part of the budget session.
After the MLAs refused to fall in line, the Congress had petitioned the Speaker to disqualify them under the Anti-Defection Law.
However, Jadhav, along with other three MLAs hadattended the session and voted in favour of the finance bill,with an intention not to violate the whip and avoid stringent action.
Speaking to reporters Ramesh Jarkiholi said he and his colleagues were still dissatisfied with the Congress, but it had not ended yet and they had not gone to the stage of quitting the party.
He said they discussed several issues with the Chief Minister and that certain things could not be revealed.
"I'm saying we are still dissatisfied with the Congress.
It has not ended yet, but we have not gone to the stage of quitting the party.
There are certain issues, I can't say much now..."
"Temporarily things have ended, let's see what will happen in the days to come," he said, adding their displeasure was against the Congress and not the Chief Minister and that they had brought issues to the notice of the high command.
Nagendra said they discussed development issues relating to Belagavi and Ballari districts.
To a question, he said he was with the Congress party and would continue to be so, while his "brothers" were free to decide if they wanted to join the BJP.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
