Days after the Congress-JD(S) fought to form a Government in Karnataka, the battlelines are now drawn for Congress leader Ramesh Kumar and BJP’s Suresh Kumar for clinching the Speaker’s post. The Karnataka Assembly on Friday will witness election of the Speaker and whosoever wins will ask Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy to prove his majority on the floor of the House.
Senior Congress leader and former Minister KR Ramesh Kumar on Thursday filed his nomination for the post of the Speaker. He was accompanied by Deputy CM G Parameshwara, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and other leaders. To counter the Congress and JD(S) nominee BJP’s S Suresh Kumar, a senior leader of the party, also filed his papers for the post. Even though Ramesh Kumar from the Congress is likely to get elected since the JD(S)-Congress combine has the required number following post-poll alliance, the BJP is taking no chances and fighting it out by nominating Suresh Kumar for the post.
Six-time MlA KR Ramesh Kumar had served as the Speaker during the HD Deve Gowda and the JH Patel Government in the State (1994-99). The Deputy Speaker will be from the JD(S). K Srinivas Gowda and AT Ramaswamy of the JD(S) are in the race for the post.
The BJP fielded senior party leader S Suresh Kumar as its candidate for the post of the Assembly Speaker, apparently to force a trial of strength before the HD Kumaraswamy-led Government seeks a vote of confidence. Suresh Kumar is a fifth term legislator and filed his nomination papers before Assembly Secretary S Murthy at the Vidhana Soudha.
After the May 12th Assembly elections the State went through a political turmoil as the Karnataka voters gave a fractured mandate for a hung Assembly. In the process BJP’s Yeddyurappa with 104 elected representatives to form the Government but before floor test resigned as he could not muster the support of 111 MlAs. But ending a political upheaval Congress with 78 MlAs supported JDS with just 37 MlAs. The formation of coalition of Congress –JD(S) to keep the BJP away made HD Kumaraswamy of the JDS 25th chief minister of the State. The swearing in ceremony has become a new platform for opposition unity where galaxy of opposition leaders descended to fight Modi-Shah Combine in the ensuing 2019 polls.
Kumaraswamy with 117 coalition MlAs of the JDs and the Congress will prove his majority on the floor of the house after the election of the speaker. He requires only 112 and he will sail through with 117 against the BJP’s 104. As anticipated there will not be any surprises as parties have issued whip to vote for their MlAs. This will end the ordeal of the MlAs of the Congress and the JDs who are herded in resorts and posh hotels.
In another development ahead of floor test, BJP’s strongman BS Yeddyurappa has invited disgruntled congressmen to join BJP. Coming down on the Congress and regional party leaders for “ganging up” against Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the oath taking ceremony of HD Kumaraswamy as Chief Minister in the city, Yeddyurappa said it would make no difference and the BJP would win all 28 lok Sabha seats from the state in the 2019 elections.
Claiming that the friendship between the Congress and JD(S) would not last three months, he said if the Assembly was dissolved at this very moment, the BJP would get over 130 seats in the state. “Over 90 per cent of Congress MlAs are unhappy with the JD(S) and can any time switch over to the BJP,” he warned.
In a changed heart towards former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah , Yeddyurappa said former Chief Minister was ditched by the Congress high command although he had single-handedly ensured the victory of 78 of its MlAs with the support of his Kuruba community. He said the Congress had forgotten Siddaramaiah’s contribution and was being disrespectful to his Kuruba community by joining hands with the JD(S) in an “unholy alliance.”
His sudden sympathy for the former Chief Minister after the bitter battle the two recently fought in the just concluded Assembly elections experts say he is taking advantage of Siddaramaiah being sidelined in the Congress and also gain the backing of the Kuruba community himself.