Karnataka: Rebel MP's do not wish to participate in the proceedings

BJP members demand the chief minister's resignation at Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru. File Pic /PTI

Bengaluru: The Congress-JDS government in Karnataka is hanging by a thread Wednesday ahead of the floor test on July 18 with the rebel MLAs refusing to yield after the Supreme Court held they cannot be compelled to attend the assembly session to decide the ruling coalition's fate.

As the coalition with truncated strength struggled to shore up its numbers amid fading hopes, the Supreme Court Wednesday ruled that the 15 rebel Congress-JD(S) MLAs "ought not" to be compelled to participate in the proceedings of the ongoing session of the state Assembly.

The court verdict was interpreted in political circles as a relief for the rebel lawmakers, as it categorically said an option should be given to them as to whether they wanted to take part or stay out of the assembly proceedings.

The ruling coalition had held out the threat of using the Whip against the wayward MLAs, citing the disqualification provision under the anti-defection law. Armed with the court order, the rebel MLAs camping in Mumbai said there was no question of stepping back on their resignations or attending the session.

"We are happy with the decision of the Supreme Court, we honour it," rebel Congress MLA B C Patil said in a video released to the media.

As the spotlight turned on the Supreme Court, a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said the Speaker was free to decide on the resignations of the rebel MLAs within the time-frame decided by him. The SC was hearing the plea of 15 rebel MLAs of Congress and JD(S), seeking a direction to the Speaker to accept their resignations from the Assembly.

Karnataka Assembly Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar welcomed the Supreme Court decision, giving him freedom to decide on the resignations of rebel MLAs, and said he would conduct himself responsibly in accordance with the principles of the Constitution. Kumar has, however, not given any indications about the time frame within which he would decide on the resignations.

'SC order seems to protect defectors'

The Congress in Karnataka has termed the SC order on the political crisis in the state as "bad judgment", which seemed to protect the defectors and encourage horse-trading. In a series of tweets, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee chief Dinesh Gundu Rao termed it an "extraordinary order". "The #SupremeCourt verdict is now encroaching upon the rights of the Legislature. This is a bad judgment which seems to encourage horse trading and is also violating the doctrine of separation of powers," he said in a tweet.

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No of rebel MLA's of JD(S)- Cong

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