The Hindu : Front Page : I am confident: Kumaraswamy

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Friday, Jan 27, 2006

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I am confident: Kumaraswamy

S. Rajendran

A.K. Antony circumspect, says situation is 50:50 for the Congress

Bangalore: The conscience vote of the Janata Dal (Secular) MLAs to be cast on Friday will decide the fate of the Dharam Singh Government on the floor of the Vidhana Soudha. The party has not issued a whip to its members in the Assembly.

A nail-biting finale to the eight-day political drama is in the offing. Those in the Congress toeing Dharam's Singh line are confident of surviving the trial of strength due to the "transparent support" extended by former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda who has "regained total control" over his party MLAs. . What for the past week appeared to have become Janata Dal (Son) with H.D. Kumaraswamy in the driving seat appears to have become JD (Secular) with Mr. Deve Gowda back in command.

Mr. Kumaraswamy told The Hindu that there was no question of any change in the MLAs' stand, irrespective of the "attempts" by the Congress to continue with the present arrangement. "All the legislators in our group are now anti-Congress and totally committed to forming a government with the BJP. We will stand by our commitment given to the BJP. I am confident." Interestingly, all the senior Ministers of the JD (S), including Deputy Chief Minister M.P. Prakash were kept out of the discussions which Mr. Deve Gowda held with Mr. Kumaraswamy and the legislators.

A. K. Antony, AICC general secretary in charge of the party affairs in the State, who rushed to the city described the situation as "50:50 touch and go for the Congress."

Sources in Janata Dal (Secular) told The Hindu that the rebel JD (S) members would speak against the confidence motion in the Assembly and refer to their understanding with the Bharatiya Janata Party. At the stage of voting, the JD (S) members will vote as "per the dictates of their conscience." While the party's strategy has been kept a closely guarded secret, all that is being stated is that it will be the endeavour of the JD (S) to ensure that "secularism prevails." Mr. Deve Gowda launched an effort on Thursday evening to rope in rebel JD (S) MLAs. He told the belligerent members that "he would take political sanyas" if they persisted with their stand that they would form a new Government in association with the BJP. The legislators thereafter sought time to review their stand.

Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader M. Venkaiah Naidu and Mr. Antony could not fathom the mind of the top JD (S) leadership and that of the rebel JD (S) legislators. Mr. Venkaiah Naidu, who was closeted with Mr. Kumaraswamy for some time and the leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, B.S. Yediyurappa, spoke confidently about forming the next Government in the State. However, Mr. Antony was more circumspect.

While the JD (S) legislators arrived in Bangalore in the early hours of the day and were accommodated in a well-guarded resort on the city's northern outskirts, the BJP legislators who arrived at the Hosur Road outskirts of the city remained in a hotel.

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