A day after carrying out a major reshuffle in his Cabinet, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday faced a major revolt from many of his “dropped” Ministers. Cine-actor-turned-politician HN Ambareesh on Monday resigned as the member of Karnataka legislative Assembly in protest against his sacking.
Ambareesh, a powerful Vokkaliga leader from Mandya, sent a one-line resignation letter to the Speaker through his personal assistant. However, Deputy Speaker Shivashankara Reddy, who is officiating as Speaker, has not accepted his resignation as the member himself did not submit it.
“Ambareesh has sent a letter of resignation through some other person, any such letter will be considered valid only if the member himself submits it. I have sent it back,” Reddy said.
Mandya district witnessed a widespread protest against Ambareesh’s sacking. The Kannada film industry, where he is called the ‘Rebel Star’, also stopped the production of some of the movies in protest and to show solidarity with him.
Apart from Mandya, Chamarajanagara, Mysuru, Raichuru, and Bengaluru districts too witnessed protests. Senior Congress leader and Dalit face of the party in the State V Srinivasa Prasad, who too was sacked, questioned Siddaramaiah’s decision and openly challenged him.
Bandhs were reported from Chamarajanagara and Nanjangud and ‘rasta roko’ protests were witnessed at Bengaluru-Tumakuru Highway and some other parts of the State.
A near total bandh was observed in Chamarajanagara and temple town Nanjangud by supporters of Srinivas Prasad. In Chamarajanagara, shop owners downed their shutters, at Nanjangud, the vehicular movement on Mysore-Nanjangud was badly affected as protesters burnt tyres on the road.
Expressing his anguish, Srinivas Prasad said, “I was not consulted by Siddaramaiah before taking the decision to drop me. He has not evaluated my performance in the last three years. If I was given a hearing even for a few minutes I would have been satisfied.”
Followers of Congress MlA KS Rajanna resorted to “Rasta Roko” for not including their leader in the Cabinet. They burnt tyres on the road and vehicular movement on busy Bangaluru-Tumakuru was disrupted for more than two hours.
In Gulbarga, supporters of dropped Minister Qumarul Islam called for a bandh on June 26 against the move. Islam said he would present his case directly to the party high command.
Meanwhile, in a major development the AICC has appointed Dinesh Gundu Rao, a sacked Minister, as the working president of the State Congress. While Siddaramaiah said he would go to each and every one and convince them, but a senior Congress leader admitted that an internal rebellion was brewing against Siddaramaiah. He said more than 30 to 40 MlAs might be a part of this rebellion. The Congress has the numbers to tide over the crisis, but the fissure in the party have repercussion in the Assembly polls.
It is learnt that both BJP and JD(S) leaders are in touch with the “rebel” leaders. Karnataka is the only major Congress-ruled State and any loss here would badly demorlise the party.