Ballari BJP MLAs threaten to quit over new district

Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa heaved a sigh of relief after the crucial bypolls were postponed, but fresh trouble came Saturday when party legislator G Somashekhar Reddy threatened to quit if Ballari is split to create a new Vijayanagar district.

Yediyurappa has made a case for carving out a new district of Vijayanagar from Ballari, and has directed Chief Secretary T M Vijay Bhaskar to place the proposal before the Cabinet. But a section of BJP leaders is up in arms against the plan.

The demand to create a Vijayanagar district was made by disqualified Congress’ rebel legislator Anand Singh. He was the first among the 17 disqualified MLAs to resign, citing this demand as the reason. Singh led a delegation to Yediyurappa on September 18 and submitted a formal petition seeking a new district.

“If he (Singh) resigned for this, what if we resign saying it shouldn’t be done,” Reddy, who represents the Bellary City constituency, asked. “The CM must compulsorily call us for a discussion on this. Just because someone gave a letter, you can’t act in haste and bring it before the Cabinet,” he said.

Ballari is a politically significant district comprising nine Assembly segments of which the Congress won five and the BJP four in the 2018 Assembly polls.

“MLAs Gopalakrishna, Karunakara Reddy, Somalingappa and myself are on this side while Singh is the only one on the other side. No one is in favour of breaking the district. They say it will benefit administration, but development must be a united effort,” Reddy said.

Health Minister B Sreeramulu, too, has voiced his opposition against splitting the district and has said that Ballari must remain united.

This is not the first time a Reddy from the mining district of Ballari has threatened to raise a banner of revolt against Yediyurappa. The Reddy brothers - mining baron G Janardhana Reddy, G Someshekhar Reddy and G Karunakara Reddy - along with Sreeramulu had revolted against Yediyurappa when he was the chief minister between 2008-11.

Ballari has 11 taluks of which five — Ballari, Kurugodu, Siraguppa, Sandur and Kudligi — will be part of Ballari district, while six other taluks — Hospet, Kampli, Hagaribommanahalli, Kottur, Hadagali and Harapanahalli — will constitute the new Vijayanagar district, as explained by Yediyurappa in his note to the chief secretary on September 20.

If the government goes ahead with the proposal, Vijayanagar will become Karnataka’s 31st district. Also, this may become a plank Singh will use when he faces the bypoll in the Vijayanagar constituency.

The Cabinet is slated to meet next on October 3 and Yediyurappa told reporters that some key decisions will be taken there. Asked about opposition to the Vijayanagar district proposal, Yediyurappa said: “I will call everyone for a discussion on this.”