Siddaramaiah slams Yeddy over 'no administration', asks Cong to prepare for Assembly polls

Bengaluru: Continuing to express doubts over the longevity of the BJP government in Karnataka, senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Sunday said he asked his party men to prepare for Assembly polls.

"I have said, it is difficult for this government to complete three-and-half years. With the support of 17 Congress-JD(S) people (disqualified former legislators) if they (BJP) say they will run the government, how long can it survive?" Siddaramaiah asked.

Speaking to reporters in Mysuru he alleged all the 17 Congress-JD(S) disqualified MLAs have gone with the BJP for the sake of "power".

"With those who are not committed to a party's principles and programmes, with those who don't have political values if you form a government, how long can it survive?" he questioned.

As the BS Yediyurappa-led BJP government completed one month in office last week, Siddaramaiah had claimed that it may last one year at the most.

Claiming that it was difficult for the BJP government to survive for long, Siddaramaiah on Sunday said, "Yesterday also during party workers meeting in Mangaluru I have told our party men that first the by-elections will come, after that Assembly election may also come, so all of you get ready."

Absence of 17 Congress-JD(S) MLAs during the trust vote had led to the collapse of the HD Kumaraswamy headed coalition government in July, and helped BJP to come to power. The then Assembly speaker Ramesh Kumar had disqualified 17 Congress-JD(S) MLAs under the anti-defection law, which they have challenged in the Supreme Court.

On getting relief from the apex court, some of them would be inducted into the Cabinet as per the arrangement agreed upon, BJP sources have said.

Responding to a question whether the BJP government has taken off, Siddaramaiah sought to know if it existed at all.  "Where is the government?" he asked.

"Yediyurappa headed the single-member Cabinet for about 25 days.. now 17 of them have become ministers, but they have not begun their work. So there is no government for last one month," he alleged.

Following the collapse of Congress-JD(S) coalition government, Yediyurappa was sworn in as the Chief Minister on 26 July , and subsequently he proved majority on the floor of the Assembly on 29 July.

More than three weeks after he was sworn in as the Chief Minister, Yediyurappa had expanded his cabinet on 20 August by inducting 17 Ministers, and a week after that he allocated portfolios to them.

Both cabinet expansion and allocation of portfolios thereafter that saw appointment of three deputy chief ministers had lead to discontent within the BJP.

Alleging that the government has not been effective in addressing the needs of those affected by floods, Siddaramaiah said, they have not been able to manage the situation and relief work "properly.