The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear an application filed by the Karnataka unit of the Congress to take on record a compact disc and transcripts of a speech allegedly made by Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa about the BJP backing the disqualified Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) legislators to topple the Kumaraswamy government.
The application was orally mentioned before a Bench led by Justice N.V. Ramana by senior advocate Kapil Sibal and advocate Sunil Fernandes on Monday for urgent listing.
This development comes shortly after the Bench extensively heard the petitions filed by the disqualified legislators challenging their ouster from the Assembly under the anti-defection law. On October 25, the Bench reserved the case for judgment. In the four-page application, the Congress said the “annexed transcript which contains the speech of Shri Yeddurappa unequivocally establishes the fact that the entire defection of the petitioners was at the behest, supervision and directions of the leaders of the BJP”.
It said: “A perusal of the transcript would clearly reveal that the motive of the petitioners was to defect and bring down the Kumaraswamy government, thereby attracting provisions of the Tenth Schedule of Constitution of India, 1950.”
The application said the Congress had sent a letter on November 2 through the Karnataka Governor to the President of India seeking the dismissal of Yediyurappa government and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
