Battle for Karnataka shifts to Delhi

The ruling Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) in Karnataka is taking the battle to save its government here to New Delhi with all party legislators and MPs planning to parade before President Pratibha Patil to prove its majority.

Beleaguered Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa and all the 120 BJP legislators and the party's Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members are reaching the national capital later Monday to mount pressure on the central government not to dismiss the state ministry.

The state assembly has 225-members including one nominated. One seat is vacant. The Congress has 71 members, the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) 26 and six independents, one of whom is supporting the BJP.

"We have the majority and all our legislators and parliamentarians will be in Delhi later Monday. We will parade all our legislators to prove the majority, if the president agrees to it," Yeddyurappa told reporters after an emergency cabinet meeting here.

Slamming Governor H.R. Bhardwaj for "recommending dismissal of my government in spite of having majority", the chief minister said his (Bhardwaj's) "action has boosted the image of BJP".

"The reputation and image of Congress and Janata Dal-Secular which have been demanding dismissal of my government have bitten the dust now," he said.

Bhardwaj late Sunday sent a "special report" to the central government on Karnataka developments following the Supreme Court restoring the membership of 16 rebel law makers - 11 of the BJP and five Independents.

Though the report has not been made public, Yeddyurappa, fearing that Bhardwaj has sought his government's dismissal, wrote to Patil late Sunday urging her to reject the "unconstitutional recommendation".

Demanding Bhardwaj's immediate recall, the BJP also held a rally at the Gandhi statue in the heart of the city, dropping its earlier plan to stage the rally at Raj Bhavan, a kilometre away.

In New Delhi, BJP central leaders slammed Bhardwaj and urged Patil and the central government to reject his recommendation to dismiss the party government, imposing direct central rule and keeping the assembly suspended.

The state cabinet met in Bangalore and recommended to Bhardwaj to convene an assembly session from June 2.

The cabinet had called the session for May 16, soon after the May 13 apex court verdict restoring the membership of 16 rebels. But Bhardwaj did not give his nod for it and instead recommended the government's dismissal.

State BJP president K.S. Eshwarappa has threatened state-wide agitation if the government is dismissed. He also said the BJP will not give up its demand for Bhardwaj's recall.

However, the Congress welcomed Bhardwaj's recommendation and said it will hit the streets if the Yeddyurppa government is not dismissed.

"We have already alerted all our district units to be ready for agitation if the corrupt Yeddyurappa government is not thrown out," state Congress president G. Parameshwara told reporters here.