K'taka crisis solved, Yeddy to continue as CM

The 14-day political crisis that paralysed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Karnataka was resolved today after senior party leader Sushma Swaraj brokered peace among the chief minister and the controversial Reddy brothers at a meeting in New Delhi.

B S Yeddyurappa will continue as the chief minister even as a coordination committee will be formed to oversee the state’s affairs. The committee will include Yeddyurappa, senior leader and MP Ananth Kumar and state Revenue Minister G Karunakara Reddy.

After the meeting, Yeddyurappa told reporters that issues had been resolved and that all leaders would work together for betterment of the state.

“For the past one week, there was some confusion. I agree that the relief work for the flood-affected people in north Karnataka was on the backburner. We will return to the state tomorrow, visit the flood-hit areas and speed up relief operations,” said the chief minister.

The Yeddyurappa ministry was paralysed for the last two weeks as Tourism Minister Janardhana Reddy, along with his brother Karunakara, was speaheading a campaign for the CM’s removal.

Though the dissident leaders have yielded to the BJP high command’s decision on the continuation of Yeddyurappa as CM, one of their conditions — the removal of the CM’s principal secretary, V P Baligar — has been fulfilled. It is not known yet whether the CM has agreed to another major condition of the Reddy brothers — the removal of Shobha Karandlaje, who holds the rural development and panchayat raj portfolio in the cabinet.

Senior leaders from both the warring groups of the party, including the chief minister, G Janardhana Reddy, Health Minister Sriramulu and Ananth Kumar, attended the meeting held by Swaraj at her residence in the national capital.

Later, senior party leaders including the CM, Janardhana Reddy, Sriramulu, Ananth Kumar and Murugesh Nirani went to senior party leader LK Advani’s residence and greeted him on his 83rd birthday, which was attended by BJP top brass like Rajnath Singh, Venkaiah Naidu, V S Acharya and Swaraj.