BJP denies ‘game’ in Karnataka, says problem within Congress

New Delhi: The BJP on Tuesday rejected Congress’ allegation that it is trying to topple seven-month-old Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)-Congress coalition government in Karnataka and hit back at opposition parties calling the current crisis their “internal problems”.

“We are not doing any game. Why we should topple if they themselves are toppling their government? It is their problem. They have their internal problems and unnecessarily blaming us,” BJP General Secretary and party’s in-charge for Karnataka P. Muralidhar Rao told IANS.

He said to date, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has never said that the Karnataka government is in minority, though he added that it cannot survive its full five-year term.

“From our side, there was no meeting with dissidents or there was no such activity. If there are dissidents, they are within the Congress. Instead of solving the problem, they are calling dissidents as BJP agents. We are waiting and watching. But it’s sure that this government cannot survive its full five-year term and will fall on its own due to internal conflicts,” he said.

Earlier in the day, R. Shankar, a legislator from Ranebennur Assembly segment in Haveri district, belonging to the regional Karnataka Pragnavantha Janata Party (KPJP), and H. Nagesh, Independent MLA from Mulbagal constituency in Kolar district, withdrew their support to the coalition government.

Rao also slammed the Congress for their “failure to provide good and coherent government” in the southern state.

The senior BJP leader said that the party MLAs are staying in a hotel in Manesar as a precautionary measure after Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said that some BJP MLAs are in his touch.

“My MLAs are here only because they had come to Delhi for National Convention. All over the country all MLAs came. We only stopped them as a precautionary measure after Kumaraswamy said that the BJP MLAs are in touch with him,” he said.

The BJP has kept 99 of its 104 legislators at a private resort in Gurugram, adjoining the national capital.

In the 224-member Assembly, the BJP has 104 members, Congress-79, JD-S 37, BSP, KPJP and Independent one each, besides the Speaker. The Bahujan Samaj party, KPJP and an Independent were supporting the coalition.

[source_without_link]IANS[/source_without_link]