Hubballi: Belagavi MP Jagadish Shettar stated that the suspension of BJP MLAs from the Assembly for six months should be withdrawn, while the alleged honeytrap case should be handed over to the CBI for a thorough inquiry.
"Protest (in the Assembly) becomes inevitable when the government becomes adamant. There is provision to take action to maintain discipline in the House. Speaker should have issued warning and suspended for a day or a week, but suspension for six months is not correct. I don't say he took this decision on his own, and it could not be done without the provocation from the CM. Siddaramaiah should also ask the Speaker to withdraw the suspension. Otherwise, it would be in a way curtailing the rights of legislators," he said.
Shettar told reporters in Hubballi on Sunday that the CM should order a CBI probe to investigate the honey trapping issue. Such a move of barring MLAs from attending committee meetings was unprecedented and not correct, he noted.
Congress members had harassed Bhojegowda who was in the Council chairman's chair. Siddaramaiah had kicked the Assembly's door. Was Siddaramaiah suspended then? I don't know whom the Speaker consulted, but he should rescind the suspension order voluntarily, he said.
The honeytrap issue warrants a thorough investigation to determine whether it was an effort of blackmailing gang or by someone with political motives. All those involved in this should be traced to end this forever. Ministers who allege honeytrap should reveal the identities of those involved in it. The ruling party should take decisive action to end this practice, Shettar said.
Reiterating that the Congress government may fall due to infighting, Shettar said Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar are involved in a proxy war through their supporters to defend their claim for the CM's post. Administration has collapsed due to infighting, and development has taken a backseat due to corruption, he charged.
He also said any issue related to the possibility of D K Shivakumar joining hands with the BJP is not discussed in the party platform and he has no information about it.
Terming boundary dispute related to Belagavi as a closed chapter, Shettar said the state has accepted Mahajan report. Kannadigas and Marathis in Belagavi are living in harmony. A few persons taking law into their hands should not be projected as Kannada-Marathi conflict, but action should be taken against such individuals, he said. "We have to maintain peace for the development of the region," he added.