Karnataka BJP asks rank & file to prepare for bypolls at 17 assembly segments
Bengaluru, Sept 6: BJP's core committee in Karnataka on Friday directed its rank and file to gear up for bypolls in 17 assembly segments, necessitated by the disqualification of the MLAs in July for 'anti-party' activities.
"The BJP as a political party has started preparing for the election.
If the elections happen, we will make sure that we win all the seats," state BJP state general secretary and MLA Arvind Limbavali told reporters after the core committee meeting.
Asked whether those who contested previously would be given a ticket again, Limbavali said, "We don't know who will contest. Our sole target is to see BJP candidates winning".
The bypolls were necessitated as 17 MLAs were disqualified in July for their anti-party activities.
Sixteen of these legislators, comprising 13 from Congress and three from JD(S), had resigned en masse in July.
Another independent MLA who had joined Congress, extended his support to the BJP in his letter to the Governor Vaju Bhai Vala.
Their resignations and subsequent disqualification brought down the Congress-JD(S) coalition government.
This resulted in JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy resigning as chief minister, paving the way for BJP to form the government under the leadership of B S Yediyurappa.
For BJP, the victory in the bypoll would mean its stable government in the state.
The party has 106 MLAs in the 224 member assembly, including the Speaker and the support of an independent MLA, whereas Congress and JD(S) have 66 and 34 MLAs respectively.
Besides the bypolls, BJP will start preparations for four legislative council seats in the state, Limbavalli said.
The elections will take place in June, but the process was likely to start from October 1, he added.
Ahead of elections, the core committee decided to further intensify the ongoing membership drive in the state.
"In the previous drive, 87 lakh members were enrolled in Karnataka.
In the latest drive we enrolled 28 lakh members. Our target is to take it to 50 lakh, which is going on," Limbavali said.
The enrolment of active membership drive will be taken up from September 8, he said, adding that the party wanted to have at least two booth level active members and state-wide their number should be above one lakh.
BJP state president Nalin Kumar Kateel will undertake a two day state-wide tour from September 8 to oversee the formation of regional committee of active members and later furnish a report on it, the MLA said.
Another issue discussed during the meeting was the party's coordination with the government, especially to carry out relief work in flood-hit areas, Limbavalli said.
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Purported sleazy videos case: Action on suspended DGP after dept inquiry, says Home Minister
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Sunday said that the government will decide on further action against the now-suspended DGP K Ramachandra Rao based on recommendations following a departmental inquiry into a case concerning videos purportedly showing him behaving obscenely with women in his office.
The minister's comments followed reports that the special probe committee has ruled out Rao's claims that the clips were fake and AI-generated.
"After further departmental inquiry, whatever they recommend, the government will decide based on that. The department has to give a report to the government, and based on the recommendation made, we will take a decision," Parameshwara told reporters here in response to a question.
Since Rao claimed the circulating videos were fake AI creations, they were sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), the minister said in response to a question.
"A team was formed in the department to find the truth. They have submitted a report to the department. The department will have to inform the government about the same, based on which further action will be taken," he added.
The state government had formed a team of four IPS officers, led by R Hitendra, Additional Director-General of Police (Law and Order), to conduct a preliminary inquiry in the case.
The government in January suspended Rao, the 1993-batch IPS officer serving as the DGP, Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement (DCRE), after viral videos purportedly showing him acting in an obscene manner surfaced.
The videos purportedly show the 59-year-old hugging and kissing women while in office. He was wearing a police uniform in a few videos. Rao had, however, called the videos "fabricated" and vowed to take legal action.
There were even reports that the videos were shot in 2016-17 inside the office of the Inspector General of Police - Belagavi range.
