In a surprise move, arch political rivals Congress and BJP members have come together to move a no-confidence motion against the Ballari Zilla Panchayat president Bharati Thimmareddy and vice-president P. Deena.
In the 47-member House (the number has gone up from 40 to 47 after seven members from Harpanahalli, which was recently re-merged with Ballari district), the BJP had held the reins of the administration.
The contention of the members seeking to dislodge the sitting panchayat president and vice-president has been that development works have come to a standstill.
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As many as 27 members from either parties, after holding a meeting here on Monday, submitted a letter to the Chief Executive Officer requesting him to convene a special general body meeting where they could move the no-confidence motion.
Enquiries revealed that both Ms. Thimmareddy and Ms. Deena had had to step down after the first two-and-a-half years of the total five-year terms and make way for others. Ms. Thimmareddy and Ms. Deena got elected to the posts in April 2016.
However, earlier, Ms. Thimmareddy had to step down following a direction of the High Court of Karnataka in a writ petition filed by a few members accusing her of obtaining caste and income certificates by concealing facts.
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In a legal battle that lasted nearly three years, Ms. Thimmareddy stepped down and assumed charge four times during the period.