BENGALURU: The back-to-back resignations of two Congress MLAs in a single day has left the Congress-JDS coalition dazed. While the BJP has chosen to adopt a 'wait and watch' policy anticipating more MLAs to desert the coalition, leaders of the Congress called for meetings with legislators to ensure damage control. Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, who is currently on a personal visit to the United States, made frantic phone calls to ministers in his cabinet as well as select legislators to salvage the situation.
"I have been constantly in touch with Anand Singh. He has discussed many issues with me but his resignation has come as a shock to me," said DK Shivakumar, water resources minister and in-charge of Ballari. Congress legislative party chief Siddaramaiah held meetings with MLAs who had been hobnobbing with Ramesh Jarkiholi and Anand Singh to avoid further damage.
"Speculations that I will quit as MLA are absolutely false. I am a disciplined soldier of the Congress," said Hagaribommanahalli MLA Bheema Naik in a tweet after Anandh Singh's resignation. Later in the day, he met Siddaramaiah to assure that he will stay in the Congress. A host of MLAs like Akhanda Srinivas Murthy and Basavraj Daddal, who were part of the rebel group, also met Siddaramaiah. Aides of the former Chief Minister Byrati Basavraj and Muniratna were present during the meetings.
Clearly taken aback by the sudden resignation spree, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy is said to have made several frantic calls to his coalition partners as well as his own legislators. The first such 'SOS' call went to Water Resources minister DK Shivakumar followed by JDS Supremo and former Prime Minister HD Devegowda. The resignations have been timed to perfection to take place when Kumaraswamy is not in the country.
On multiple occasions, the Chief Minister has sat rebel and disgruntled leaders down to pacify them even as the Congress refused to do so. Soon after the resignation drama broke out, Kumaraswamy is said to have reached out to half a dozen Congress MLAs and three JDS MLAs personally asking them not to take any hasty decisions and wait until he returns to Karnataka.
Sources from the BJP suggest that Anand Singh met a senior BJP leader from Karnataka on Saturday to finalise the plan for his resignation. Ramesh Jarkiholi's resignation, however, came as a surprise for the BJP that hadn't allegedly made any fresh attempts to approach the already miffed MLA.