Quote:The roads and streets in Ichapuram town of Srikakulam, where Jagan started his yatra on the occasion of his father YS Rajasekhara Reddy's birth anniversary, turned in to a sea of humanity as boisterous crowds gathered outside the railway station to receive the young leader.



They also lined up the entire route of Jagan's procession.

Quote:CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu’s Dravidian movement, built on the foundations of atheism and rationalism, is beginning to shake at its roots with founding member and chief minister Muthuvel Karunanidhi lavishing funds on temple renovation in a way not seen in at least a century.



The movement — reformist for the untouchables and ruinous for the Brahmins — has come a full circle from the days of breaking idols of Hindu deities, especially the ubiquitous Ganapathy, to spending hundreds of crores renovating temples and encouraging its members to participate in them.



Karunanidhi, 87, is the last of the atheist politicians left of the Dravidian crop who have ruled the state for 33 out of the last 43 years. His predecessors, friend-turned-rival late M G Ramachandran, and J Jayalalithaa, discarded the ‘rationalist’ plank decades ago.



This Friday will mark the Kumbhabhishekam, or the consecration of the centuries-old Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple in Sholinghur, about 100 km north-west of Chennai. Mr Karunanidhi has deputed colleagues to supervise the work.



“Till date, we have spent [color="#FF0000"]420 crore on temple renovation[/color] and this is a clear evidence to show the amount of interest that Kalaignar has shown in promoting temples in the state,” says K R Periakaruppan, minister for Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments.



Spending on temple renovation, praying or even cozying up to religious leaders is hardly surprising for anyone in a country where prime ministers and presidents often disturb the silent prayers of the common man with their presence in prominent temples. But when Mr Karunanidhi, a selfproclaimed atheist who has been living next door to a Krishna temple for decades, attends to temple renovation, it is an irony.



This change of heart can be attributed to several things: A strategy to get votes as people throng temples and religious gurus to seek solace in a fast-paced material life. Or, a genuine desire on the part of someone in the evening of his life and worried about his legacy to connect with God.



“Spending money on temple renovation would not help the DMK government fetch any votes,” says Cho Ramaswamy, political commentator and editor of the Tamil magazine, Thuglaq.



Part of the change can be attributed to the state’s political landscape, which has transformed beyond recognition. The Congress is no longer the dominant party,[color="#FF0000"] many of the Dravidian movement’s cherished goals, such as higher reservation for backward castes, have been met, and the beneficiaries have not only become prosperous, but have also started courting God and religion in a big way.[/color]



Also, to be fair, the Dravidian movement never tried to project itself as a comprehensive atheist party. While the anti-Brahmin rhetoric was strong, it took care to ensure that it did not hurt the religious beliefs and traditions of many of the state’s people, including their myriad gods and goddesses. So, while Karunanidhi would take time out and attack the Ramayana, he never spoke ill of Murugan, who was recognised and promoted as a ‘Tamil God’ .



Since Karunanidhi’s Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam returned to power in May 2006, it has spent around 420 crore on temple renovations. This is a near three-fold jump over 147 crore spent in the five-year rule of rival All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, or AIADMK, led by believer J Jayalalithaa. There are 38,481 temples, mutts and trusts under state control. Karunanidhi, Jayalalithaa and Ramachandran have their roots in the Dravidian Movement.



Seeds of Dravidian Movement sown in 1925



THE seeds of the movement were sown in 1925 when E V Ramasamy Naicker, known as Periyar or the elder, walked out of the Indian National Congress convention after the then Brahmin-dominated party refused to consider a resolution seeking proportional representation. Periyar’s reasons for seeking change were strong. In 1914, of the 650 graduates in the then Madras Province, 452 were from the Brahmin community. Of the 15 elected for the All India Congress Committee, 14 were Brahmins.



Periyar led the Self-Respect and the Anti-Hindi movements at the aristocrats-led Justice Party formed to further the non-Brahmin interests in the now four southern states.

Quote:Bangalore, Oct 5 (PTI) A group of about 20 MLAs and ministers today raised a banner of revolt against the B S Yeddyurappa-led BJP government in Karnataka in a fresh bout of dissidence.



Led by Excise Minister M P Renukacharya, the dissident group comprises disgruntled legislators who either failed to get ministerial berths or are unhappy with the recent Cabinet recast or those eyeing key posts in boards and corporations.



Yeddyurappa was closeted with BJP's state unit president K S Eshwarappa, ministers loyal to him and also met senior RSS functionaries and discussed steps to deal with the situation.

Quote:Yeddy sacks dissident ministers, asked to prove majority

October 06, 2010 11:13:23 PM

PTI | Bangalore

Faced with a serious rebellion threatening the stability of the first-ever BJP government in the south, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa today sacked four dissident ministers and accused the opposition Congress and JDS of attempting to topple his government.



On a day of swift developments, Yeddyurappa recommended to Governor H R Bhardwaj to drop from the Cabinet -- Shivaraj Thangadagi, Venkataramanappa, P M Narendraswamy and D Sudhakar.



The sacked ministers were independents who had lent crucial support to Yeddyurappa when the BJP failed to get majority in the May 2008 Assembly polls.



Yeddyurappa said two-three senior ministers would be asked to quit to pave way for induction of five or six new faces into his Cabinet shortly

Quote:The chief Minister, who left for a visit to a temple in Kerala, plans to move a confidence motion in the Assembly to prove majority on October 11, a day before the deadline set by Governor H R Bharadwaj.



Efforts to pacify the dissident leaders intensified with state Ministers Janardhan Reddy and B Sriramulu holding parleys with various factions.



BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu is expected to reach Bangalore later during the day to act as peace broker and formulate strategies to resolve the crisis.



Around 12 dissident legislators had left for Kochi on Wednesday night. They moved on to Mumbai on Thursday and have announced plans to go to Shirdi Sai Baba temple to offer prayers later during the day.

Quote:Crisis blows over for BJP in K’taka

October 08, 2010 2:19:35 AM



Kumar Uttam/Kestur Vasuki/ PTI | New Delhi/Bangalore



Rebels’ leader proclaims BSY as their CM



The ruling BJP’s carrot-and-stick policy seems to have won over the 19 MLAs whose revolt had reduced the BS Yeddyurappa Government in Karnataka to a minority. The Minister spearheading the dissident campaign late on Thursday proclaimed Yeddyurappa as the rebels’ leader.



Amid efforts to reach out to rebels by offering them some ministerial berths and the BJP central leadership threatening them with notice under the anti-defection law, dissident Excise Minister MP Renukacharya said the Government was stable ahead of next week’s trust vote.



“Yeddyurappa is our leader. The Government is stable. There is no threat to it. We are going back to Bangalore on Friday,” Renukacharya told Kannada TV channels from a posh Goa resort, where he and around 14 dissidents are camping. 8)



Shortly after Renukacharya’s comments, Yeddyurappa told newspersons in Bangalore, “I hope by Friday evening, all the MLAs (who are outside now) will return and join our fold. I am very confident of winning the vote of confidence. I am 100 per cent sure that my MLAs will support me.”



Earlier, the BJP’s leadership went all out to save its Government in Karnataka, with its top guns holding talks with the rebels and the party threatening to disqualify the dissident legislators. While at least four rebel MLAs have already reconciled during the last two days, Yeddyurappa dropped two more Ministers on Thursday.



The BJP’s central leaders were keeping a close watch on the Karnataka developments. They felt that getting the rebels disqualified before the trust vote could be the only option left to them for saving the Yeddyurappa Government if rebels continued to be defiant. “The rebel MLAs should remember that they have won the election on the party symbol and can invite disqualification. We are hopeful that the State Government will survive the crisis,” BJP spokesman Shahnawaz Hussain said.



In neighbouring Goa, the situation took an ugly turn when former CM Manohar Parrikar, along with dozens of supporters, barged into the resort and spoke to the rebels. Though he was initially not allowed in by the security, he finally had his way. Janardhan Reddy, who leads the anti-Yeddyurappa brigade but is now playing the saviour, also met the rebels in Goa.



Senior BJP leaders M Venkaiah Naidu and HN Ananth Kumar were also engaged in the negotiations. The exercise has shown initial results with the return of two more rebel MLAs — Raju Gowda and SK Bellubi. Bellubi was likely to be made a Minister along with dissident MLAs Beluru Gopalakrishna and HS Shankaralinge Gowda.



Ministers S Suresh Kumar, VS Acharya and B Sriramulu offered to quit, if required, to make room for them.



Sources said IT and Housing Minister Katta Subramanya Naidu, facing allegations of corruption, was likely to be dropped. Sugar and Horticulture Minister SA Ravindranatha and Mass Education Minister Revu Naik were also likely to be asked to quit.



Yeddyurappa, back in Bangalore after visiting the famous Rajarajeswara temple at Taliparamba in Kerala, was confident that his Government would comfortably sail through the acid test on October 11. He said, “I have God with me…all my MLAs and party leaders are with me. I am 100 per cent sure I will sail through.”



While he continued wooing a section of the rebels, he also forwarded to Governor HR Bhardwaj the resignations of two more Ministers, Balachandra Jarkiholi and Anand Asnotikar, which were immediately accepted. Jarkiholi was Minister for Municipalities and Local Bodies and Asnotikar Minister for Fisheries and Science & Technology. Both were in the forefront of the rebel camp.



Yeddyurappa had on Wednesday dropped four Ministers — Shivaraja Thangadagi, Venkataramanappa, PM Narendraswamy and D Sudhakar — after they revolted. Eighteen MLAs, including these six Ministers, had announced withdrawal of support to the Government. At least five rebels were staying in a posh Goa hotel, arranged for by a Congress Minister. The BJP has dispatched Janardhan Reddy to Goa to talk to these MLAs.



Reddy blamed JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy and Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah for the crisis. “We have clear majority,” Reddy said, adding that the Opposition leaders would have to “hang their heads in shame” after the trust vote.



State BJP president KS Eshwarappa said in Bangalore, “There is no dissident activity. Some MLAs are dissatisfied; they nurse hopes of getting posts and positions.” He added, “As a family, the BJP will resolve the issues amicably.”



The Congress blamed the Chief Minister for the crisis. Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president RV Deshpande said the Congress had no intention of bringing down the BJP Government and that the Congress high command would take appropriate steps in case of any eventuality.

Quote:Speaker of the Karnataka legislative assembly K G Bopaiah has hit back at Governor H R Bharadway stating that he is shocked with the letter that was written to him.

The speaker K G Bopaiah in his reply to the governor stated that he was shocked that the governor was interfering in the affairs of the speaker.

The Supreme Court in the Rameshwar Dayal case has clearly stated that the governor cannot interfere with matters pertaining to disqualification, and in such matters, the speaker is supreme.

Governor Bharadwaj had written a letter to the speaker telling him to conduct the trust vote on Monday as per the numbers each party had on October 6. This was seen as a move to prevent any disqualification or suspension of the rebel MLAs.

Meanwhile, the speaker concluded hearing the matter pertaining to the plea of disqualification. After hearing arguments, the speaker reserved orders on the matter. Sources told rediff.com that the verdict may come out by late Sunday evening.

Quote:October 11, 2010, 8:00:

Karnataka Speaker K G Bopaiah has disqualified 16 MLAs (11 BJP and 5 Independents) just ahead of the crucial trust vote against the BJP government on Monday.



Bopaiah, who heard the disqualification plea on Sunday, passed the disqualification order at 0230 hours on Monday.



This means that the 16 MLAs who had been plotting the fall of the government cannot vote in the trust motion today.



With the disqualification, the strength of the Karnataka assembly has come down to 208, which means that the BJP will have to get at least 105 votes to get through the trust vote.



The BJP currently has 105 members following this disqualification. In addition, the Speaker will also have the right to cast his vote.



The congress on the other hand has 73 MLAs while the JD-S has 28 and there is one Independent candidate.



The rebels who have been barred from voting have decided to approach the Karnataka high court chief justice directly. They feel that the order is unjust and would seek an early hearing since the trust vote commences at 1000 hours and court proceedings normally start only by 1030 hours.



The rebels say that in case they cannot get relief from the high court, they will approach the state governor

Quote:October 11, 2010, 9:03:

The 16 MLAs, disqualified by the Speaker, landed up at the residence of Karnataka high court Chief Justice G S Kehar.



While their legal team has already filed the petition before the registrar of the high court, the rebels decided to request the chief justice to intervene in the matter.