Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah should apologise, take action against Cong leaders: BJP over Governor's Assembly speech row

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], January 22 (ANI): BJP leaders on Thursday lashed out at the ruling Congress party in Karnataka for opposing and allegedly attacking Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot over his refusal to deliver the customary address at the start of the Joint Legislature Session of the State Assembly, and called for a protest in return. 

Karnataka BJP chief B Y Vijayendra condemned the ruling party for “insulting the Governor” and demanded that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah apologise on behalf of his party and take action against Congress leaders. 

“What the Governor has done today is the right decision, whereas the ruling Congress government insulted him, which is not correct. The ruling party MLA and MLCs trying to attack his excellency is totally unconstitutional. The Chief Minister should seek an apology regarding the behaviour of his party and should take action against those who tried to stop and attack the governor,” he stated. 

The Karnataka BJP President said that they will also “hit the streets,” adding that the Congress is trying to “cover up their failures.”

“They have no other choice, people are cursing their government. People are upset with them. To cover up their failure, they are blaming the BJP and the governor. We will also protest politically and hit the streets,” he stated. 

Earlier, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had expressed his intention to approach the Supreme Court to protest the action of the Governor. 

"...Every new year the Governor has to address the joint session of Assembly, had the speech prepared by the Cabinet. This is a constitutional requirement. Today, instead of reading the speech prepared by the Cabinet, the Governor read the one he himself prepared. This is in violation of the Constitution of India. It violates Articles 176 and 163 of the Indian Constitution. He has not discharged his duties as per the Constitution. Therefore, we are going to protest against the attitude of the Governor. We are examining whether or not to approach the Supreme Court."

The Congress accused the Governor of breaching Article 163, which mandates that the Governor act on the Cabinet's advice in executive matters, and Article 176, which requires the Governor to formally present the government's agenda to the Legislature.

Responding to the allegations, the state BJP chief Vijayendra said that the Governor is “not a puppet” and alleged that the CM did not “save the dignity of the house and the Governor.”

“By naming a constitutional provision, you can’t compel the governor to become a puppet and expect him to follow directions. I told the state government and the CM to come forward to save the dignity of the house and the governor. It is the CM who is trying to undermine and politicise the constitutional provisions,” he alleged. 

“If he wanted to act as a political tool, he’d have skipped the session. But he didn’t. He came and addressed the assembly as per the Constitution. It is the Congress’s mistake,” Vijayendra said. 

Highlighting the benefits of the VB-G RAM-G Act, the state BJP chief argued that the State government is attempting to “antagonise the people against the BJP-led Central government,” by creating a “false narrative.”

“The ruling party is trying to misuse the Assembly and antagonise the people against the central government. The Prime Minister and the NDA government have brought in several changes in MGNREGA, which is now VB-G RAM-G. The only vision is to ensure the dream of Gandhi Ji: Ram Raj and Gram Raj comes true,” he said. 

“Valuable changes have been made, and people are welcoming it across rural India. However, the CM is trying to politicise and create a false narrative, which is unacceptable. Siddaramaiah should remember he is the CM of the state, not of the Congress party. He shouldn’t lower the dignity of the Governor and the House,” he added. 

Additionally, Karnataka Leader of Opposition and BJP leader R Ashok said that action should be taken against the Law Minister H K Patil for interrupting the Governor’s speech. Stating that the Governor did not “disrespect the house”, Ashok accused the Congress of making the House “a mess.” 

He further said that Congress destroyed the value of the Constitution and that he will be writing a letter to take action against the Congress leaders. 

“The Governor has done his duty. Earlier, when Bharadwaj was there, K. Khurshid Alam also gave a speech. What is wrong with this? But the Congress has made the entire House a mess. The Law Minister has interrupted his speech. There are certain rules to be followed during the Governor's speech. There is a rule that the Governor's speech should not be interrupted. If he does so, action should be taken against him; he should be thrown out of the House,” he said. 

“The Governor has not disrespected the House. He signed all the bills in the Belagavi session. Was it right then? The Congress has made the House a congressional office. Who administered the oath to the Chief Minister's Law Minister? Now he has insulted him. Today, Congress has destroyed the Constitution's value. Therefore, I am writing to request that action be taken against him,” the LoP added. 

This comes as the Governor, during the joint session of the Legislative Assembly, walked out without completing his address, which was drafted by the state government, amid stern opposition from the Congress. (ANI)