Earlier today, the governor told Yeddyurappa in a letter that "in case you are willing to do so, (that you have the majority in the House) I give you a fresh opportunity to do so by 11.00 AM on 14.10-2010".
Governor HR Bhardwaj, who had earlier recommended president’s rule, on Tuesday asked chief minister BS Yeddyurappa to move another vote of confidence in the state assembly on October 14.
“There is no legal provision to seek majority once again. Yet, after looking into the ugly scenes in the state assembly on Monday, and considering how the house was conducted on that day, as a friendly gesture, I am offering the chief minister one more opportunity to prove his majority in the house. The offer is not binding on him, he can either accept or reject it,” the governor said. The chief minister has accepted the proposal.
Addressing a crowded press meet, governor Bhardwaj said, “The chief minister failed to demonstrate his majority in clear and objective terms. There were unauthorised persons on the floor of the house, and proceedings were disrupted. This is not a matter in which a voice vote can be held. A clear division is required to prove majority.”
Bhardwaj, asserting that the manner in which the vote was conducted on Monday was far from satisfactory, said, “A free and fair floor test is considered the best way to establish the majority of the government in the house. This was laid down by the Supreme Court in the SR Bommai case. In accordance with the spirit of that ruling, I requested the chief minister to prove his majority on the floor of the house. Immediately after the assembly session was held, I received delegations of MLAs of all parties and independents, who raised serious objections to the manner in which proceedings were held, and the intimidating circumstances in which the voice vote was conducted. There were outsiders present in the house, even though they were not entitled to be there. There were complaints that persons who were not members of the assembly also registered their voice vote. And the motion was disposed of in no time at all.”
Distressed, the governor said that the report produced by Bopaiah on the proceedings of the house on Monday did not reflect with any accuracy the numbers of members voting for and against the motion. The proceedings were reduced to a farce, and uniformed police personnel were present in the house. For all these reasons, I have now come to the conclusion that Monday’s motion was unclear. I recommended that the state be put under president’s rule. Now, I stick to my stand. It is the Centre that should take a final decision,” the governor said.
CM seizes offer
Yeddyurappa could not have expected a better Dusssehra gift from HR Bharadwaj and he seized it with both hands.
Yeddyurappa who flew to Delhi to parade his 105 MLA before president Prathibha Patil was shocked when he heard about Bharadwaj's letter asking him to prove his majority again.
Even as the BJP think tanks were discussing at LK Advani’s residence what to do about the governor's new demand, a phone call from Yeddyurappa's legal advisor eased the tension. The Karnataka high court, had just refused to issue stay order against speaker KG Bopaiah's decision to disqualify the rebels.
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