BENGALURU: The Council appears to be heading for another showdown between the Congress and BJP. Council Chairman Prathap Chandra Shetty listing the election of the Deputy Chairman at number four on the agenda has not gone down well with the BJP, which held a meeting to discuss the issue. BJP members are furious that the discussion on the committee report on unruly scenes in the House on December 15, under the chairmanship of Marithibbe Gowda, has been listed before the election.
The apprehension is that after the committee report is taken up and certain House members are identified and penalised, it could affect the election that follows. Meanwhile, the no-confidence motion against Chairman Shetty can be taken up only 14 days after intimation, according to House norms, and falls on February 1. The issue could be taken up on February 2 or later, according to the BJP decision.
The Congress is also making a pitch for the post of Deputy Chairman, with MLC K C Kondaiah filing his nomination on Thursday, sending a message to the BJP that the party is not willing to relinquish control of the Legislative Council to the BJP without a fight. Though the writing on the wall is clear — the Congress has only 29 votes as against the united might of the BJP and JDS with 46 votes — the party has decided to contest the election. Kondaiah’s name was proposed earlier in the day in the Congress Legislature Party.
M K Pranesh, who filed his nomination for the Deputy Chairman’s post, will be the unanimous candidate of the BJP and JDS, with the regional party openly voicing issue-based support for the ruling party. The matter is expected to be put to division vote, where members will stand in their seats and the chair will take a count of those for and against. It will be taken up on Friday.
Earlier on Thursday, the Council met for a brief period after the joint session for an obituaries session,
where members remembered Dharme Gowda, the Deputy Chairman who passed away recently. Among the speakers, Basavaraj Horatti of the JDS spoke emotionally about Dharme Gowda.