Cong says govt illegitimate, demands its dismissal

The Congress on Wednesday termed “illegitimate” Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa’s government in Karnataka after the apex court upheld the disqualification of Congress and JD(S) MLAs and, demanded immediate dismissal of the government.

In an all-out attack on the BJP, Congress leaders claimed that the Supreme Court verdict had “exposed” BJP’s Operation Kamala plan to topple the JD(S)-Congress government led by H D Kumaraswamy by engineering defections.

Congress also called for an investigation into the role of Home Minister Amit Shah in engineering defections by using money power contending that it had released a recording, purportedly of Yediyurappa, assuring the MLAs

“The SC judgment is a clear slap on the face of the BJP and its leadership that exercised all sorts of unconstitutional, illegal and corrupt practices to bring down the Congress-JD(S) government in Karnataka,” AICC general secretary in-charge of Karnataka, K C Venugopal said in a statement here.

Congress’ chief spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala described the government
as “illegitimate” in terms of law and constitution and called for its immediate dismissal.

Senior Congress leader Abhishek Singhvi also termed as “fair comment” on the existing law, the apex Court decision to strike down the part of the then Speaker Ramesh Kumar’s order barring the rebel MLAs from contesting elections.

“Perhaps the Speaker was not right legally and constitutionally to say the once an MLA has been disqualified, he cannot contest elections,” Singhvi said.

However, Youth Congress claimed that the apex court order would lead to a “race to buy MLAs and MPs in India’s politics.”