Bommai govt can collapse anytime, says Siddaramaiah

Karnataka Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah on Saturday said the Basavaraj Bommai-led BJP government may not complete its full term and “it can collapse anytime”.

Siddaramaiah based his conjecture on disgruntlement within the BJP.

“This government won’t take off. And, I don’t think it will complete its term. It can collapse anytime,” Siddaramaiah, a former chief minister, told reporters.

Karnataka is scheduled to face its next Assembly election in 2023.

“Look at the fighting going on. One senior MLA (MP Kumaraswamy) protests in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue crying injustice by his own party government. Several ministers have said they’re unhappy. Several MLAs are unhappy for not becoming ministers,” Siddaramaiah pointed out.

The Congress leader cited the examples of disgruntled BJP leaders such as Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, CP Yogeshwar, SA Ramdas, Arvind Limbavali and Arvind Bellad. “All of them remain disgruntled for not being made ministers and are visiting New Delhi. So, there’s no stable government in this state,” he said.

This is a marked departure from Siddaramaiah’s stand; last month he said an early election was unlikely in Karnataka.

Picking holes in the Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai’s Cabinet, Siddaramaiah said as many as 13 districts had no representation in the council of ministers. “Mysuru, Chamarajanagar, Kodagu...13 districts have no ministers. I can understand if 4-5 districts aren’t represented. Bengaluru alone has seven ministers. Instead, some other district could have been accommodated,” he said, adding that a Cabinet should have the right balance of region and caste.

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