Now, it is the turn of the principal Opposition Congress to woo MLAs from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. BJP Ministers C.P. Yogeshwar and Rajugouda (Narasimha Naik) are said to be keen on quitting the Ministry as well as their MLA seats to join the Congress. According to sources close to them, these Ministers may quit anytime now.
Mr. Yogeshwar, who came to the BJP from the Congress and represents Channapatna, told his supporters in his constituency on Wednesday that he would take a final decision on Thursday on whether to join the Congress.
Unhappy
Another BJP MLA Gopalakrishna Belur on Wednesday expressed displeasure over not getting any prominent position in the BJP and indicated that he was on his way out of the ruling party. But he did not make it clear whether he would join the Congress and only said that he would take a call on the issue after consulting his constituency.
According to sources, BJP MLAs who want to quit are keen on making their political moves now as the elections to the urban local bodies are being held.
Preparations
They have to prepare the ground for contesting the Assembly elections by getting ticket for their supporters in the urban local bodies polls from the parties which they want to join.
Hence, they want to switch loyalties immediately instead of waiting till the announcement of the Assembly elections, according to the sources.
List of aspirants
Meanwhile, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president G. Parameshwara told The Hindu that about 20 MLAs from the BJP, including several Ministers, and the Janata Dal(S), were keen on joining the Congress and contest the next Assembly elections on its ticket.
The KPCC had submitted the list of these aspirants to the high command seeking approval. However, the high command was yet to give its clearance, he said. He made it clear that the high command’s clearance was a must for including people from other parties who wanted to join the Congress with the intention of contesting the elections on its ticket.
The BJP will lose its majority in the Assembly if six of its MLAs quit as the party has 108 members, including the Speaker, a nominated member and an Independent who is part of the Ministry. The resignations by BJP MLAs Vittal Katakdonda and Tarikere Suresh are yet to be accepted by the Speaker.
