Guv sanction unites Cong like never before

Bengaluru, NT Bureau: The Karnataka Congress, which had been a divided house over a host of issues, is now rallying around Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, thanks to allegations of corruption and Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot’s sanction to prosecute the CM in the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case.

The allegation is that Siddaramaiah’s wife Parvati received 14 alternative plots of far greater value in lieu of land she had lost to MUDA in Kesare village on the outskirts of Mysuru city.

As a result of the sanction, charges are being framed against the CM under section 17 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and section 218 of Bharitiya Nagarika Suraksha Samhita (BNSS), 2023.

Before these developments, however, the Grand Old Party in the state had been bickering over a variety of issues, including the efficacy of the five guarantees in fetching, the demand by a section within the Cabinet that the scope of the schemes be reduced to only include the poor and the inability of the MLAs to get additional grants for their constituencies.

The lawmakers even called for some ministers to be dismissed for the Congress securing a paltry nine out of 28 Lok Sabha seats. Deputy CM DK Shivakumar angling for the CM’s post and the ministers and MLAs in his camp backing him and the pushback by Siddaramaiah loyalists deepened the fissures as well.

There was even a demand to replace Shivakumar as the Karnataka Congress chief. However, the Governor’s declaration has made them all rally behind the CM, sensing that the BJP wanted Siddaramaiah replaced.

Ruling party reacts to Oppn march

The BJP-JD(S) padayatra (march) which started in Bengaluru on August 3 and concluded in Mysuru on August 9, had the stated goal of getting Siddaramaiah to resign as CM over graft allegations. Irregularities in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation Limited (KMVSTDCL) were also cited.

However, Cong ress planned their own programme namely “Janandolana” (people’s movement) in the same districts as the Opposition. It concluded a day before the padayatra in Mysuru, where Siddaramaiah declared he wouldn’t budge.

Cong ress was also beset by the perception promoted by the BJP and JD(S) that Deputy CM DK Shivakumar was trying to unseat Siddaramaiah by disclosing graft claims.

CM calls CLP meet in wake of Guv action

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has convened a Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting on August 22 in the wake of Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot granting permission to prosecute him in the alleged site allotment scam in MUDA.

The chief minister will brief the Congress legislators about the facts of the case and will chalk out a strategy to fight the case.

Muda scam: Congress to stage state-wide protests today against Governor's sanction to prosecute CM

The Congress stage statewide protests against the permission given by Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot to prosecute Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in the MUDA alternative site 'scam'.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who is also the Congress state president,said, "The protest rallies will be held in all district headquarters across the state. All party leaders and workers will participate."

Speaking to reporters at his Sadashivanagar residence, he alleged that the Governor is making a case out of nothing. This is a "murder of democracy" and the Congress will protest against it.

Shivakumar said he has instructed the party leaders to carry out peaceful protests and ensure that anti-social elements do not infiltrate the rallies and create trouble.

Asked about the meeting with AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, he said, "We briefed him today about the developments in the state." On nation-wide protests about the Governor's decision, he said, the AICC would decide on that.