Bangalore: With the BJP bagging a whopping 25 out of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in the State, the BJP’s best show ever has cast a shadow over the longevity of the JD(S)-Congress Coalition Government in the State.
The JD(S)-Congress Coalition has a strength of 117 (79 Congress and 38 JD(S)) in the 224 member assembly, barely four seats more than the required number of 113 for a majority.
The BJP which has a strength of 105 members, including that of Dr. Avinash Jadhav, who was elected in the bypoll from Chincholi assembly segment, also claims to have the support of two independent MLAs, thus taking its number to 107.
With more than 10 disgruntled Congress legislators reportedly ready to jump ship, the BJP is priming its hopes on Ramesh Jarkiholi camp in the Congress, which has reportedly become more active following yesterday’s Lok Sabha results which saw the BJP recording a landslide victory.
Buoyed by its huge victory, the BJP may up its ante on toppling the Coalition Government, which is low in confidence after yesterday’s defeat of Coalition candidates in the LS polls, by luring disgruntled legislators in the Congress and JD(S) camps.
Meanwhile, Ramesh Jarkiholi, Congress legislator from Belagavi who is said to be spearheading the dissident camp, is learnt to have held talks with nearly a dozen MLAs at an undisclosed location near Bengaluru to discuss the prospects of their future and also on quitting their seats and joining BJP.
This post was published on May 24, 2019 7:55 pm