Siddu: Will not resign, 'Gehlot is BJP puppet'

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: A defiant Chief Minister Siddara - maiah on Saturday ruled out his resignation, terming the sanction that Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot granted to prosecute him illegal and unconstitutional. Siddaramaiah maintained that he had not indulged in any wrong doing in the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case.

The CM even claimed Gehlot, BJP and JD(S) were trying to destabilize the State government. He pointed out the Governor hadn’t sanctioned prosecution against the likes of then MLA HD Kumaraswamy back in November when the Lokayukta had requested it and former minister Shashikala Jolle.

'Guv wants to appease his masters': Governor permission to prosecute CM is unconstitutional, undemocratic —Karnataka Dy CM DK Shivakumar

Siddaramaiah said that he had the backing of his deputy DK Shivakumar and other Cabinet colleagues with whom he held a meeting at 5 pm on Saturday, the Congress high command and party workers. Congress will also hold protests against the sanction on Monday.

“Tell me why and for what reason should I resign?...The Governor has to resign because he has acted as a puppet in the hands of the Government of India,” Siddaramaiah told mediapersons after the Cabinet meeting.

We have been saying this from the beginning that the office of the Governor has been misused. Now it's proved. —Karnataka Home Minister Parameshwara

“The Governor is the representative of the President of India. He should function as the representative of the Constitution and not as the representative of the Centre and BJP,” he added.

BJP appointed governors creating trouble in non-BJP ruled states. —Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge