Summary:
Sudhakar, who was denied chairmanship of Karnataka State Pollution Control Board after being appointed, has time and again dropped hints that he will quit the Congress.
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BENGALURU: Buoyed by a stupendous performance in the recent Lok Sabha polls, the BS Yeddyurappa-led BJP in Karnataka appears to have begun the spade work to topple the year-old JD(S)-Congress government in the state.This was evident on Sunday when disgruntled Congress legislators Ramesh Jarkiholi and K Sudhakar accompanied by BJP leader and former deputy CM R Ashoka met BJP leader SM Krishna at his residence in Bengaluru.
The meeting took place at the same time that Mandya MP-elect Sumalatha Ambareesh, with BJP state president BS Yeddyurappa, visited the senior Vokkaliga leader to thank him for supporting her in Mandya.This has come at a time just when the coalition government is struggling to keep afloat following a dismal performance in the elections.
It also set off speculation that a dozen disgruntled Congress and JD(S) MLAs may resign this week to reduce the strength of ruling coalition partners in the assembly and enable the BJP to seek a floor test.
However, both Congress MLAs clarified that the meeting was just a courtesy call."It was not a political meeting.
We wanted to wish Krishnaji on BJP`s stupendous performance in the Lok Sabha polls.
I was an MLA even when Krishna was CM from 1999 to 2004 and we share good rapport.
So only I visited to inquire about his health.
That is why we met him," Jarkiholi said."We had nothing to discuss, we just wanted to wish him," Sudhakar said.
"He is a senior leader and he was a former Congress leader that`s why we felt that we must wish him on his party`s success."While Yeddyurappa deemed it a coincidence, Ashoka said he visited Krishna at the latter`s residence to discuss party-related matters.