I’ll not suggest any names for CM post: Yediyurappa
Bengaluru:- Outgoing BJP Chief Minister in Karnataka, B.S.Yediyurappa, categorically stated that there was no pressure from party high command to tender his resignation as he submitted his letter to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Monday.
Speaking after his visit to the Raj Bhawan, Interim Chief Minister Yediyurappa stated, he voluntarily took the decision to step down from the post to make way for a new CM in the state.
He also maintained that he will continue in politics serving the party organisation.
He said he will not ask for any position from the party in future. “There is no question of me sitting idle or going out of politics. I will strive to bring back the party to power every time,” he underlined.
“I once again add that, there was no pressure from Delhi. I only decided to tender resignation on the occasion of completion of two years in office,” he stated.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party president J.P.Nadda and Home Minister Amit Shah have not forced me to take any decision,” he stated. “I am doing this so that, the party could install a new face in the state as the CM,” he added.
The BJP high command was tense over the process of changing the leadership of Karnataka as the Monday developments progressed but heaved a sigh of relief as the former CM Yediyurappa’s “voluntarily resigned” statement came through.
Yediyurappa’s announcement finally brought the curtains down on a week-long suspense surrounding his continuation as Karnataka chief minister.
I’ll not suggest any names for CM post: Yediyurappa
B.S. Yediyurappa announced that he will not be suggesting any names for the coveted post minutes after he stepped down as the Karnataka Chief Minister on Monday. However, sources said that Yediyurappa will spare no effort to install a candidate from his camp to the position.
“I will not suggest any names. It is the prerogative of the BJP party high command to choose the new chief minister,” he added.
After submitting his resignation to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, he also said that he will extend full cooperation for the candidate chosen by the party. The party is capable of choosing the right candidate, he added.
Yediyurappa also tweeted that his decision to step down was his own. Speaking after his visit to the Raj Bhawan, the Interim Chief Minister stated that he voluntarily took the decision to step down from the post to make way for a new CM in the state.
He also maintained that he will continue in politics serving the party organisation. He said he will not ask for any position from the party in future. “There is no question of me sitting idle or going out of politics. I will strive to bring back the party to power every time,” he underlined.
“I once again add that, there was no pressure from Delhi. I only decided to tender resignation on the occasion of completion of two years in office,” he stated.
“It has been an honour to have served the state the past two years. I have decided to resign as the Chief Minister of Karnataka. I am humbled and sincerely thank the people of the state for giving me the opportunity to serve them,” he said on Twitter.
He further stated, “I am grateful to PM Narendra Modi Ji, J.P. Nadda Ji, HM Amith Shah Ji for their support.”
“Sarvodaya (Welfare of all) through Antyodaya (Welfare of the last poor man) has been the guiding philosophy of our party. In the last 50 years, upliftment of poor, oppressed, backward communities, senior citizens, women and children has been my priority and I dedicated myself to bring positive changes in the lives of the people,” he claimed.
“Our tallest leaders, starting from Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyayaji, Syama Prasad Mookerjee, Atalji, Advaniji, Murali Manohar Joshiji have inspired me to dedicate myself to serve the nation. I have also received immense love and support from Modiji, Amit Shahji and Naddaji,” his Tweet read.
“Deeply influenced by Jagajyoti Basavanna’s philosophy of Kayaka (work), Dasoha Tattva (service philosophy) & the life of Lingaikya (late) Sri Shivakumara Swamiji of Siddaganga Mutt, I have dedicated my entire 50 years of public life towards nation building and fulfilling the aspirations of the people of Karnataka,” Yediyurappa maintained.
Yedi submits resignation to Karnataka Guv
Bengaluru:- Karnataka Chief Minister, B.S. Yediyurappa submitted his resignation to Governor Thawarchand Gehlot on Monday after tweeting that it was an honour for him to have served the state for two years.
In a tweet in Kannada, he said that he has submitted his resignation to the governor and the latter has asked him to continue as Interim chief minister until his successor is announced.
“I have decided to resign as the Chief Minister of Karnataka. I am humbled and sincerely thank the people of the state for giving me the opportunity to serve them. I am grateful to PM Narendra Modi and BJP national president J.P. Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for their support,” he tweeted.
Soon after his speech at a function celebrating his two-year anniversary where he announced his decision, Yediyurapa along with his cabinet colleagues went to Raj Bhavan and submitted his resignation.
BJP to appoint central observers to elect new K’taka CM
The BJP top leadership went into a huddle on Monday to find a successor of Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, who has resigned from the office.
To elect the new chief minister of Karnataka, the BJP will appoint central observers by Monday evening. It is learnt that BJP chief J.P. Nadda, union Home minister Amit Shah and Karnataka in-charge Arun Singh met in Parliament house after Yediyurappa’s resignation and discussed the situation in Karnataka.
According to sources in the party, the BJP appointed central observers for the Karnataka Legislative Party meeting to find out a successor of Yediyurappa.
“Central observer will be appointed by the evening. Till BJP MLAs elect the new leader of Legislative Party, Yediyurappa will work as acting chief minister of Karnataka,” sources said.
A party insider said that the meeting between Nadda, Shah and Singh met for an hour and a detailed discussion was held to find out the new chief minister of Karnataka.
Sources said that some names have been shortlisted by the central leadership considering caste equation in the state. “Caste plays an important factor in Karnataka politics and selection of new chief minister will be considering social equations of the state,” sources said.
Putting an end to speculations about his removal, Yediyurappa submitted his resignation to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot in the state capital on Monday. After his resignation, Yediyurappa tweeted, “It has been an honour to have served the state for the past two years. I have decided to resign as the Chief Minister of Karnataka. I am humbled and sincerely thank the people of the state for giving me the opportunity to serve them.”
In another tweet, he thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nadda and Shah for their support. “I am grateful to PM @narendramodi Ji, @JPNadda Ji & @AmitShah Ji for their support,” he tweeted.
During his two days visit to the national capital recently, Yediyurappa repeatedly denied possible change of guard in the state. There was strong resentment against Yediyurappa within the party. During his visit to Delhi, Yediyuruppa met Prime Minister Modi, Nadda, Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. His visit to New Delhi came in the backdrop of growing voices against him in the state unit.
“During the visit to Delhi, Yediyurappa was asked to resign over lots of opposition within the party against him,” a party functionary said.
Yediyurappa’s home constituency observes shutdown in protest over resignation
Residents of Shikaripura, outgoing Karnataka Chief Minister B. S. Yediyurappa’s home constituency, shut down all shops and commercial establishments on Monday as a mark of protest.
Prior to beginning of his political career, he was drafted by the Karnataka RSS pracharak in Shikaripura, where he got married and settled. Yediyurappa began his electoral politics by getting elected to the Shikaripura City Council and then became its president. After his successful stint in City Council politics, he was elected from the Shikaripura Assembly constituency in 1983 and went on to win eight times from the same seat.
Though he was a member of the RSS from the beginning, he never tried to position himself as a hardliner; instead he carefully elevated himself as a farmers’ leader in the state.
From the beginning the Bharatiya Janata Party has banked heavily on the Lingayat community as its core vote bank. The chief architect of this vote bank was late Union minister H. N. Ananth Kumar, who during 2002-2004 as the BJP state unit chief along with Yediyurappa, was able to attract a large section of followers of late former chief minister Ramkrishna Hegde who had fallen out with former prime minister H. D. Deve Gowda and formed the Janata Dal (U). In this period, the BJP’s tally jumped from 40 to 79 members in the Assembly and Lok Sabha seats from 7 to 17.
Yediyurappa prior to 2004, had worked hard to increase the party’s seats from merely 12 to 40 with his pro-farmer agitations. However, even to this date, the BJP’s real strength remains anywhere between 30 to 50 seats, but for the large chunk of JD(U) leaders migrating to the BJP in the north-Karnataka region, who readily accepted Yediyurappa as their leader after Hegde’s demise.
Kumar, who was a Brahmin, enjoyed a very good equation with Yediyurappa till 2004. Their relationship soured later, as Yediyurappa was being seen as the tallest Lingayat leader after he was able to bring the party near to victory by winning 110 seats in the 2008 Assembly polls. However, he remained a jinxed leader, who could not complete his term though he was sworn in as Chief Minister of Karnataka on four occasions.
After months of speculation over his resignation, Yediyurappa on Monday announced his resignation and put in his papers before the Governor. As his government completed two years in office, Yediyurappa thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP national president, J.P. Nadda and BJP chief strategist and Union home minister Amit Shah.
Let Yediyurappa reveal who was responsible for his tears: Cong
The way Karnataka Chief Minister Yediyurappa cried on Monday while announcing his resignation, it was not the tears of one person. They were the tears of a chief minister who represents the state. What is the pain behind this? Who caused that pain? KPCC President D.K. Shivakunar asked on the exit of Yediyurappa.
Let this be revealed to the people of the state, he urged.
There is no happiness visible behind his resignation. Instead, the pain was clearly visible. What’s that pain? Who is responsible for that, he should explain it to the people of the state, he demanded.
Was he pained because the people suffered two years of coronavirus? Is it because the party high command didn’t control the MLAs going against him? People should know this, he said.
The BJP leaders stabbed Yediyurappa in the back. A leader, Eshwarappa gave a complaint against the CM to the Governor, another was seen speaking against him showing total disrespect, he added.
The state as well as national leaders have troubled Yediyurappa since the beginning. Yediyurappa didn’t get support from the high command. They didn’t control who foul-mouthed him, Shivakumar pointed out.
“Whoever left the Congress have lost their positions today. We shall see if they want to return to the party. We don’t find any profit in Yediyurappa being replaced. People of the state have already decided to replace the BJP itself,” he claimed.
Challenge accepted, says Lingayat seer on leadership change in K’taka
Reacting to the resignation of B.S. Yediyurappa from the Karnataka Chief Minister’s post, Dingaleshwara, the seer of the Lingayat Mutt in Balehosuru, told the BJP leadership on Monday that religious seers have taken the leadership change in the state as a challenge.
“Despite our appeals and warnings, the party has asked Yediyurappa to step down from the CM’s post. Yediyurappa was made to cry. We, the religious seers, have taken it as a challenge,” Dingaleshwara said.
The tears shed by Yediyurappa were not only his, as the entire state cried with him, he added.
“The BJP will disappear in his tears in the state. There will be irreparable damage to the party to the extent that no one will be able to rebuild the party in the state,” the seer said.
“It is just not our community leader who cried, as the BJP has compelled our entire community to come to tears. Today it won’t be a celebration of two years in power for the party. The party is going to pay for it,” he added.
Yediyurappa had ensured good administration despite natural calamities and the corona crisis, he said, adding that the BJP leadership will realise its mistakes.
Other Veerashaiva-Lingayat seers are yet to react to the development.
After resigning for the Chief Minister’s post on Monday, Yediyurappa had made an appeal that no religious seer should issue statements against the party.