TWO MORE BJP MINISTERS QUIT

 Narasimha Nayak and C.P. Yogeshwar

The Bharatiya Janata Party government is hanging by a thread just a few months ahead of the Assembly polls as two of its Ministers, C.P. Yogeshwar and Narasimha Nayak (Raju Gowda), on 21st Feb 2013 resigned from the Ministry. They are also set to quit their Assembly seats on 22nd Feb 2013 and are set to join the Congress.

If their resignations are accepted by the Speaker, the strength of the BJP in the 208-member Assembly will be reduced to 106, including the Speaker, a nominated member and an Independent who is part of the Ministry.

The BJP government will lose its majority if four more MLAs quit. While resignations by two MLAs, Vittal Katakdonda and Tarikere Suresh, are pending with the Speaker, it is said that two or three more MLAs who are keen on joining the Congress and the Janata Dal (Secular) are waiting for clearance from those parties to quit their Assembly seats.

Both these leaders are said to have decided to join the Congress and contest the next Assembly elections. Though they wanted to quit their Assembly seats only after declaration of the Assembly elections, the announcement of elections to urban local bodies made them advance their decision.

However, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president G. Parameshwara reiterated that the Congress high command was yet to give clearance for admitting them to the party.