2 MLAs withdraw support to (JD-S)-Congress govt in Karnataka

Bengaluru: Two legislators — a member of a regional outfit and an Independent — on Tuesday said they are withdrawing their support from the seven-month-old Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)-Congress coalition government in Karnataka.

R. Shankar, a legislator from Ranebennur Assembly segment in Haveri district, belonging to the regional Karnataka Pragnavantha Janata Party, and H. Nagesh an Independent from Mulbagal constituency in Kolar district, withdrew their support to the coalition.

“I had extended support to the JD-S-Congress coalition expecting good governance, but have been disappointed,” Shankar told the media.

The two legislators shared with the media their letter to Karnataka Governor Vajubhai R. Vala withdrawing their support to the coalition.

He sent the letter withdrawing support to the Governor on the official letterhead of the Ministry he was incharge of before he was sacked.

The withdrawal of support by the two MLAs came amid an ongoing political war between the coalition partners JD-S and Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over alleged poaching of Congress legislators by the BJP.

Speaking to reporters here, senior Congress leader K.C. Venugopal blamed the BJP for indulging in horse trading.

“There is no threat to Kumaraswamy government, but the BJP is desperately trying to destabilise the government through ugly horse trading,” Venugopal said.