State News And Discussion - 3

[ramana]

Pioneer, 16 oct., 2010

BJP Govt remains on the edge

October 16, 2010 1:29:49 AM



Kestur Vasuki | Bangalore



While the BJP Government has won the vote of confidence in the Assembly, it remains on the edge because of the uncertainty surrounding the disqualified legislators who have gone to the court. A group of political managers of BJP, advisors, intellectuals and RSS representatives are now engaged in understanding the cause of growing discontent against the leadership of Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, and charting the roadmap ahead.



According to the group's assessment, the fact remains that the Karnataka Government is in truth a minority one and needs to tread cautiously to survive for its full term in office.



A member on condition of anonymity pointed out to The Pioneer that most of the 11 rebel party MLAs disqualified by the Speaker belong to the backward classes, while the Chief Minister belongs to a dominant community in the State. He said, "We are in the process of assessing many reasons. We feel the Government must tread cautiously as it is a minority Government. We are also looking at the conspiracy behind it all".



The Government has been in peril since its inception 28 months ago. First it was the rebellion led mining barons, the Reddy brothers, and now the recent one where the Reddys played the role of saviour. The recent revolt was more serious since the rebels even went to the extent of joining hands with the Congress and the JD(S).



The Government has for the moment survived due to the efforts of Tourism Minister Gali Janardhana Reddy, who stood by the Chief Minister and helped bring back an Independent MLA, Varthur Prakash, back into the BJP's fold.



Meanwhile, BJP insiders feel that the Central Congress leaders, who were earlier upbeat about dislodging the Yeddyurappa Government, became reluctant later as they were worried by the dominance of JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy, who had emerged as the rallying point for the dissidents. The Congress did not want the JD(S) to seize the initiative.



The informal BJP group is also looking at the possible role of the mining mafia behind the effort to topple the Government, something that the Chief Minister has been repeatedly asserting.



In a related development, addressing the BJP MLAs at his residence after his victory, the Chief Minister indicated that he would take steps to strengthen the stability of his Government.