Independent MLAs withdrew support due to Conginternal bickerings: BJP leader Muralidhar Rao
Bengaluru, Jan 15: BJP General Secretary Muralidhar Rao Tuesday said withdrawal of support to the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka by two independent MLAs was an offshoot of internal bickering among Congress leaders, mainly D K Shivakumar.
"The withdrawal of support by two independent MLAs is the result of internal bickerings among Congress leaders.
Particularly, D K Shivakumar is a problem. He basically is precipitating the problem, but levelling charges against the BJP," he told PTI over phone.
Rao, also in-charge of BJP affairs in Karnataka, stated this when asked to comment on the MLAs R Shankar and H Nagesh withdrawing support amid charges that BJP was engineering defections to topple the H D Kumaraswamy government.
Attacking Shivakumar, Rao said he was the main culprit for the fresh political turbulence as he wanted to project himself as the 'true loyal Congress leader.'
Rao said it is wrong on the part of Congress to charge BJP with horse-trading to woo independent MLAS, who are free to withdraw support to the government as they are not bound by any political party.
"Independent MLAs are not the private property of the Congress.
You tell me where is the question of BJP's indulgence in it. They are independent MLAS and they are free to support any government they want.
How can one say that these two MLAs are bounded by the Congress or the JDS?" he asked.
Asked whether the BJP expected more MLAs to quit or withdraw support to the government, Rao said, "It is far too hypothetical a question for now.
I cannot immediately comment because I do not know the gravity of the situation in Karnataka,"
Replying to a query, Rao said the BJP neither wanted the coalition government to continue, nor was it keen on bringing it down.
"We are just waiting and watching the political developments," he said.
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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.
