K'taka Crisis: Ind MLAs to seek SC order for floor test

Two Independent MLAs from the Karnataka Assembly have decided to approach the Supreme Court for a direction to Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy to conduct floor test forthwith before 5 pm on July 22.

MLAs R Shankar and H Nagesh, who withdrew from JDS-Congress coalition government, contended the ruling dispensation which has lost its majority was adopting various dilatory tactics to avoid the trust vote and indulge in horse-trading and defections from the BJP.

This comes in contrast to the plea made by Chief Minister Kumaraswamy and KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao on Saturday to the court for clarification on July 17 order that the rebel MLAs cannot be compelled to attend the Assembly session.

Their writ petition, which invoked extraordinary jurisdiction of the top court under Article 142 to seek a direction for conducting floor test on and before 5 pm on Monday, is likely to be mentioned before the Chief Justice of India for urgent hearing on July 22.

The two MLAs contended the actions of Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar and the chief minister in "not conducting the floor test being grossly illegal, irrational, mala-fide and violative of the constitutional mandate under Article 14, is amenable to judicial review under Article 32 of the Constitution."

Detailing the turn of events that took place, they said the actions by the Speaker and the chief minister are "leading to Constitutional crisis in the state."

"The ministers of the ruling coalition are not only intimidating the MLAs to vote in their favour, but they are also using illegal and unethical methods to achieve the same, including horse-trading. In order to buy time, they are trying to thwart the democratic process without facing the trust vote," they said in the writ petition filed by advocate Diksha Rai.

The chief minister of Karnataka, who is heading the minority government, may make himself scarce from the proceedings on July 22, they feared.

"It has been reliably learnt that in a desperate attempt to avoid the trust vote, the chief minister may also rake up an emergent situation and use medical emergencies, including hospitalisation to avoid the trust vote," they said.

Taking advantage of the logjam, the government, which is in minority, is taking several executive decisions like transferring the police, IAS and other officers. The MLAs also sought an impleadment application in the writ petition filed by rebel MLAs Pratap Gouda Patil and others.