We've had enough, say Karnataka BJP MLAs

A majority of Bharatiya Janata Party legislators in Karnataka on Friday favoured the party leadership decide on withdrawing support to the Janata Dal-Secular-led coalition government as chances of Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy transferring power to the saffron party receded.

At a meeting of the ministers representing BJP in the coalition government and party legislators, chaired by Chief Ministerial candidate B S Yediyurappa, a majority of them pushed for pulling out of the government and facing midterm polls, a senior leader told PTI on condition of anonymity.

As the ministers and legislators expressed displeasure over the charges leveled by JD-S against the party to cover up its failure on power transfer, Yediyurappa and other senior leaders pacified them and chose to wait till Thursday for the outcome of the dialogue between BJP president Rajnath Singh and JD-S supremo H D Deve Gowda.

Meanwhile, Yediyurappa, who returned here from Delhi on Thursday night, told reporters: "If JD-S does not want to transfer power and want to go to people's court, we BJP are also ready".

Assailing the "excuses" being cited by JD-S leaders on power transfer and taking a swipe at them, Yediyurappa said "I am also a son of the soil. I am a firm believer in the preaching of Basaveswara and do not know the art of cheating. I do what I say".

Yediyurappa said his party would take a final decision on the ongoing power transfer crisis in the face of JD-S's reluctance to honour its promise after the meeting between leaders of both parties.