Vijayendra predicts internal revolt in Karnataka Cong; says BJP won't topple govt

Bengaluru, Oct 20 (PTI) Karnataka BJP president B Y Vijayendra on Tuesday claimed that internal differences within the ruling Congress reached a critical point and senior Congress MLAs may rebel against Chief Minister D K Shivakumar.

He also said, "People made us sit in the opposition. We will be in opposition for about another one and a half years. There is no need for us to destabilise the Congress government and make the chief minister step down".

"A situation is emerging wherein the senior ruling party MLAs may rebel against the chief minister. Whatever I have said will soon be proved true," he told reporters.

In response to a question about his recent remarks that it won't be surprising if the state gets a third chief minister (during the tenure of the current Assembly) amid the alleged "internal power struggle" in the Congress, Vijayendra claimed that "the discontent among senior Congress leaders against the state government leadership was growing".

Reacting to Chief Minister Shivakumar's reported statement that the state government was ready to lead an all-party delegation to Delhi to seek drought relief but the state BJP was unwilling to join and cooperate, Vijayendra said the CM was under pressure because of certain developments within the Congress' own ranks.

"Shivakumar, who is frustrated, is repeatedly accusing the Central government," he alleged.

Referring to discussions surrounding alleged sting operations in the state, Vijayendra said people were closely watching the political developments.

Alleging that development works have not taken off despite the government being in office for nearly three-and-a-half years, he said the state government had completely failed in drought management.

He also pointed out that persons with disabilities had been forced to take to the streets to demand pensions.

"Instead of prioritising people's basic problems, the government is blaming the BJP and the Centre to cover up its own failures. There is no benefit in shifting the blame to the Centre to conceal internal political troubles and the government's failures. The people of Karnataka are watching everything and will give an appropriate response at the right time," he said.

Asked whether BJP leaders will travel to Delhi to seek drought relief, Vijayendra said the party will consult its senior leaders before taking a decision.

The BJP state chief said the NDA government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had taken several measures to protect the interests of sugarcane growers across the country.

These included promoting ethanol production and introducing policies to facilitate value addition in sugar mills, he said. The Centre had also provided financial assistance to support the sector, he added.

Vijayendra said the Centre had taken note of allegations that sugarcane farmers were being treated unfairly in weighing-related issues in the assessment of sugar recovery.

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi had held discussions with Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on the issue, he said.

"A committee has also been constituted to study the problem and examine possible solutions. The committee will visit Karnataka shortly after Dasara," Vijayendra said.

He noted that the issue is not confined to Karnataka and said the committee will consider domestic and international market conditions while examining ways to ensure a fair deal for sugarcane growers.

"The Central government is committed to protecting the interests of farmers," he said.

Asked about his recent meeting with expelled BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal, and whether he would be brought back to the party, Vijayendra said it was an "unexpected" meeting that occurred when he visited Hubballi to attend a private event.

"Both of us had attended a religious gathering of Jain monks in the city, following which we met unexpectedly at a friend's residence. Let us wait and see what will happen in the days ahead," he said. PTI