In poll-bound Karnataka, JD(S) MLA S R Srinivas resigns, to join Congress
Bengaluru (PTI): JD(S) MLA S R Srinivas (Gubbi Srinivas) on Monday submitted his resignation as a legislator to the Karnataka Assembly Speaker, ahead of the polls in the state, and said he will be soon joining the Congress.
Mr Srinivas was accused of cross-voting in the June 2022 Rajya Sabha polls, which according to the JD(S), contributed to the defeat of its candidate D Kupendra Reddy.
Last year, the JD(S) had expelled Mr Srinivas, and had even moved a petition to have him, along with another MLA K Srinivas Gowda from Kolar, disqualified under the anti-defection law. "After my resignation is accepted (by the Speaker) I will discuss with Congress leaders about joining the Congress officially...I'm planning to join Congress officially on March 31, after discussing with taluk leaders, I will decide," Mr Srinivas said.
Stating that he was resigning as JD(S) legislator with a lot of pain, he claimed that he was forced to take such a step by the party leadership, who expelled him on the basis of "false allegations." "I had worked under the leadership of (H D) Deve Gowda and (H D) Kumaraswamy in JD(S) for about 20 years, today I'm resigning as that party MLA with a heavy heart and a lot of pain. Deve Gowda had treated me like a son and encouraged me to work, I thank him wholeheartedly. Kumaraswamy too used to treat me like his own younger brother, but not sure as to what made him oust me from the party," Mr Srinivas said.
Speaking to reporters, he said he has submitted his resignation as JD(S) MLA to Speaker of Karnataka Legislative Assembly Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri. "Speaker has said he will examine it." "I'm in a lot of pain today leaving JD(S), I have no options. In October, 2021 Kumaraswamy announced a JD(S) candidate from my seat even as I was still in the party, from that day the distance between us widened. He had also made certain false allegations against me, like holding me responsible for Deve Gowda's defeat in 2019 Lok Sabha polls from Tumakuru. I had never done such anti-party activity and had honestly served the party," he added.
Also noting that he was unnecessarily expelled from the party by making certain "confusing false allegations", by accusing him of cross voting during Rajya Sabha polls, Mr Srinivas said, "I don't know who said what against me to Kumaraswamy, he acted against me and expelled me."
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Congress standing with CM Siddaramaiah, will support him, says party President Kharge
Bengaluru (PTI): Congress President M Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday said the party is standing with Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and will support him as he faces a probe by Lokayukta police in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment case.
Rejecting BJP's demand for Siddaramaiah's resignation, he noted that "neither a chargesheet is filed, nor he is convicted," and said, "let the law take its own course, and when a situation comes, the party will examine."
"When the Godhra incident happened, whether (Narendra) Modi ji had resigned (as the then Gujarat CM)? Several cases were also pending against him at that time, even against Mr Shah (Union Home Minister Amit Shah)," Kharge said in response to a question on BJP questioning CM's moral right to continue, with FIR slated to be registered against him.
Speaking to reporters here, he said: "Don't target a particular person to damage his image, through him the party will also be damaged. Your (BJP) interest is to damage the Congress party, not the individual. He may be here today or may not be, the party will continue. Just to destroy the Congress party and the Congress party's base votes, they want to destroy, that is why they are doing this."
Let the law take its own course, and when a situation comes, the party will examine it at that time, he further said. "Now nothing is there, (but) every day I'm seeing that MUDA, MUDA. Crores of rupees (have been) swallowed by industrialists, Rs 16 lakh crore of their debt have been written off, and now you are taking one small issue and fighting. That too neither chargesheet is filed, nor he is convicted. Every day this is news. I'm fed up seeing all these things."
Asked whether the Congress high command will stand with the Chief Minister, even after the registering of FIR, Kharge said: "that is a hypothetical question. We are standing with him, we will support him, because he represents the party, not (an) individual."
A Special Court here on Wednesday ordered a Lokayukta police probe against Siddaramaiah in the case, setting the stage for filing of an FIR against him.
The order of the Special Court Judge, Santhosh Gajanan Bhat, came a day after the High Court upheld the sanction granted by the Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot to conduct an investigation against Siddaramaiah on the allegations of illegalities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife B M Parvathi by MUDA.
The Special Court exclusively to deal with criminal cases related to former and elected MPs/MLAs issued the order directing the Lokayukta police in Mysuru to initiate an investigation on the complaint filed by RTI activist Snehamayi Krishna.
In the MUDA site allotment case, it is alleged that compensatory sites were allotted to Siddaramaiah's wife in an upmarket area in Mysuru, which had higher property value as compared to the location of her land which had been "acquired" by MUDA.
The MUDA had allotted plots to Parvathi under a 50:50 ratio scheme in lieu of 3.16 acres of her land, where it developed a residential layout.
Under the controversial scheme, MUDA allotted 50 per cent of developed land to the land losers in lieu of undeveloped land acquired from them for forming residential layouts.
It is alleged that Parvathi had no legal title over this 3.16 acres of land at survey number 464 of Kasare village, Kasaba hobli of Mysuru taluk.
