BJP braces up for stormy winter session of Karnataka assembly

The Bharatiya Janata Party government is preparing for an opposition charge in the upcoming winter session of the Karnataka assembly that will begin Thursday, the first full-fledged session of the government since it took over in July.

Chief minister BS Yediyurappa had taken charge in the middle of the monsoon session after the former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy-led Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition government lost a floor test, faced with a revolt by 17 MLAs, who were subsequently disqualified.

The winter session has already run into trouble after the government decided to hold it in Bengaluru and not the northern city of Belagavi, where the winter session is held annually. This, the government had said, was justified because of the devastation the district had faced in last month’s floods.

The session, which was set to be held from October 14 to 26, had to be rescheduled after the Election Commission set October 22 as the day for bypolls to 15 of the 17 vacant seats in the state. That election was postponed to December 5 after the Supreme Court took up the matter. However, the government has so far shown no inclination to increase the duration of the session.

The government also faces a rejuvenated opposition, which had been listless in the immediate aftermath of the coalition’s collapse. The government’s handling of the rehabilitation of flood affected areas, the delay in release of relief funds, its quantum and the chief minister’s inability to get meetings with Prime Minister Narendra have provided the opposition with a cause to rally around.

Former minister Krishna Byregowda of the Congress said the party would take up the issue when the assembly begins. “We will definitely press for a longer session because we need to hold discussions on the floods, the most devastating in memory,” he said.

Indeed, around 17 of the 30 districts of the state were affected by heavy rains and flooding last month. Around 80 people lost their lives over a two-week period and around 8 lakh were displaced, a majority of them from the northern districts of the state that border Maharashtra.

Byregowda said one of the main issues the party would take up would be the quantum of money released by the central government. The central government announced an interim relief of Rs 1,200 crore to Karnataka, but Byregowda said this was misleading. “Only around Rs 900 crore is from the National Disaster Relief Fund, the rest is from the State Disaster Relief Fund,” he said.

The Congress is also likely to announce former chief minister Siddaramaiah as the Leader of Opposition, senior state leaders said, to take on the BJP at this crucial moment of vulnerability.

Meanwhile, over in the JD(S) camp, former prime minister HD Deve Gowda has also decided to take up the matter of the alleged failures in flood relief. The JD(S) chief is set to hold a protest in the state capital on Thursday, the day the session begins, to highlight these lapses.

The BJP has also faced internal heat from local leaders, especially MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, who was issued a show-cause notice last week after he lashed out at the party for the delay in releasing aid to the state. He had trained his guns at the 25 BJP MPs elected from the state in May, when the BJP achieved a near sweep in the 28 Lok Sabha constituencies here.

Speaking to HT, Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri, Karnataka Assembly Speaker, said he would take up the matter of the length of the session on Thursday. “I will bring it up at the meeting of the Business Advisory Committee on that day,” he said.

The government is set to take up a vote on account for the Budget passed by Kumaraswamy in July and will also introduce a supplementary Budget to cover rehabilitation expenses. State Law Minister JC Madhuswamy said there was nothing else on the agenda at present. “Nothing has come before the law ministry yet,” he added, “but there is still time”.

The BJP is unlikely to face much difficulty in passing its Bills, considering the fact that it enjoys a majority in the House. After the disqualifications of the 17 MLAs, the House strength has been reduced to 208, and the BJP has 105 MLAs and the support of Independent MLA H Nagesh.

The Congress has 66 MLAs, the JD(S) 34 and there is the lone BSP MLA, who Congress leaders believe might vote in favour of the BJP if needed.