The Hindu : Front Page : JD(S) legislators confused over time, venue of meeting

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Monday, Aug 01, 2005

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JD(S) legislators confused over time, venue of meeting

Special Correspondent

M.P. Prakash may replace Siddaramaiah; Two Ministers may be sacked

BANGALORE: Confusion prevails in the Janata Dal (Secular) on the ways and means of removing Siddaramaiah as leader of the Legislature Party and Deputy Chief Minister. The confusion pertains to the timing and the venue. The party leadership has firmed up that Mr. Siddaramaiah and two others -- Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister H.C. Mahadevappa and Textiles Minister Satish Jharkiholi — should be removed from the ministry.

Mr. Siddaramaiah has called a meeting of the Janata Dal (S) Legislature Party (JDLP) on Thursday at his official residence "Cauvery" but a majority of the party legislators, loyal to former Prime Minister and party president H.D. Deve Gowda and party's State unit Working President H.D. Kumaraswamy have said that the decision to remove him from his position in the party and the Government should be gone through on Monday, four days ahead of the official JDLP meeting.

Further, the legislators were keen on meeting on Monday and taking a decision to boycott the official JDLP meeting which in their view will give a chance to Mr. Siddaramaiah to give an explanation.

Sources in the party told The Hindu that the informal meeting of the JDLP on Monday to be attended by 53 of the 60 JD (S) legislators is expected to gain the status of an official meeting should Mr. Deve Gowda attend the meeting.

The legislators want the former Prime Minister to speak at length on the difficulties that he encountered in nurturing the party over the years. As per convention, only the incumbent JDLP leader or the party president enjoyed the power to call for a meeting of the JDLP.

Yet another demand of the legislators is that soon after the informal meeting the former Prime Minister armed with the resolution, expected to be unanimously adopted by the legislators, should announce the appointment of Revenue Minister M.P. Prakash as the leader of the legislature party. The party leadership will then write to Chief Minister N. Dharam Singh about the change and urge him to drop Mr. Siddaramaiah and two others from the ministry.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister and the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President, M. Mallikarjuna Kharge held discussions with Congress President Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on Sunday on the political developments in the State. The Janata Dal (S) has categorically told the Congress that the removal of Mr. Siddaramaiah was an internal matter of that party.

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