BANGALORE: After two days of stonewalling, the Government agreed in the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday to a discussion on the bribery charge against Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, but not in the form of an adjournment motion.

The Government has thus agreed to face the Opposition onslaught based on the BJP MLC Janardhan Reddy's allegation that Minister for Forests C. Chennigappa collected Rs. 150 crore from mine owners engaged in illegal mining in Bellary district on behalf of Mr. Kumaraswamy.

It was Deputy Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa and the Home Minister M.P. Prakash who announced that the Government was ready for a discussion on the issue under Rule 69 of the House and not in the form of an adjournment motion as demanded by the Opposition.

Mr. Yediyurappa said the debate on the issue would help the Government find a solution to check illegal mining in Bellary district, which would, in turn, generate additional revenue for the State

Separate notice

Mr. Prakash wanted the Opposition to send a separate notice to Speaker Krishna for a discussion under Rule 69. The Government wanted to come clean on the issue, he said.

Earlier, as soon as the House reassembled after the lunch break, Congress members led by Leader of the Opposition N. Dharam Singh continued their dharna and raised slogans demanding inquiries by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project and the allegation of bribery.

M. Mallikarjun Kharge (Congress), J.C. Madhuswamy (JD-U), G.V. Srirama Reddy (CPI-M), Vatal Nagaraj (Kannada Chaluvali), S. Rajendran (Republican Party of India) and K. Jayaprakash Hegde (independent) sought a debate on the bribery allegation in the form of an adjournment motion.

Debate on Wednesday

With both the ruling parties agreeing to a discussion on bribery charge, the Speaker said the debate would be taken up on Wednesday morning and suggested that Question Hour be taken up. But the Congress members opposed it and demanded that the discussion be taken up immediately.

At this juncture, the Speaker adjourned the House for the day.

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