KJP deadline to oust BJP govt fizzles out

After its two deadlines to topple the BJP government in Karnataka failed to materialise, the B S Yeddyurappa-led Karnataka Janata Party (KJP) on Tuesday refrained from setting another, but said the Jagadish Shettar ministry will soon collapse.

“Several BJP ministers and MLAs plan to quit to join other parties including Congress,” KJP leader V Dhananjayakumar claimed at a press meet after the January 15 deadline by his party met the same fate as the earlier one of January 4. The Shettar ministry might not be in office to present the 2013-14 budget proposals, he claimed. However, KJP sources claim, some MLAs are resigning their membership enmasse on January 23.

Dhananjayakumar asked Governor H R Bhardwaj to direct the BJP government not to present the budget for 2013-14 but seek only a vote on account for a specific period as the existing government may not return to honour the budget proposals after assembly polls due in May.

He said the first list of 100 candidates of KJP would be released by this month end and on January 18 a meeting of the election committee and state unit office bearers held here to finalise candidates. Meanwhile, KJP supremo Yeddyurappa told reporters at Hassan that he would not set any deadline to bring down the BJP government.

Yeddyurappa, earlier set January 4 and January 15 deadlines but retracted saying “no deadline is set” following failure to muster support of required number of MLAs to topple the government.