BJP leaders to meet President, want Karnataka Governor out

A BJP delegation comprising all party MPs from Karnataka will meet President Pratibha Patil today to demand the recall of Karnataka governor HR Bharadwaj for functioning in a “politically motivated” manner by sanctioning the prosecution of chief minister BS Yeddyurappa on allegations of dubious land deals.

A BJP delegation comprising all party MPs from Karnataka will meet President Pratibha Patil on Monday to demand the recall of Karnataka governor HR Bharadwaj for functioning in a “politically motivated” manner by sanctioning the prosecution of chief minister BS Yeddyurappa on allegations of dubious land deals.

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The party’s decision to meet the President was taken on a day when Yeddyurappa arrived in Delhi to consult senior leader Arun Jaitley.

“The CM is here to discuss the crisis with Arun Jaitley before we launch an all-out political attack on the governor, demanding his recall,” a close aide of Yeddyurappa told the Hindustan Times.

Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar indicated in Bangalore that a decision on Yeddyurappa continuing as CM could be taken by the party within a month.

He urged the media to "wait for the results of the party's enquiry to come, then we can discuss that issue (whether the CM would quit)." Asked how long the media would have to wait, he said, "I think not more than one month."

The party has veered round to the view that a no-holds-barred attack on the governor was required at the moment. The stage for this will be set on Monday with party MPs from the state meeting the President to demand his recall.

Arun Jaitley has formulated the party’s response to the governor’s action, calling it both politically motivated and constitutionally improper.

The party delegation is expected to argue before the President that the Supreme Court has held in the past that the governor should consult the Cabinet before granting such a sanction.

Yeddyurappa told mediapersons after his arrival in Delhi, “I will strongly recommend to the party high command to seek the recall of the governor by the president for his attempt to destabilise a democratically elected government in the state.”