K'taka crisis deepens? '10 more BJP MLAs to quit'

All the 13 legislators, who resigned from the Karnataka assembly membership on Tuesday, will also give up their primary membership to the Bharatiya Janatha Party.

They will join the Karnataka Janata Party headed by former Karnataka chief minister B S Yeddyurappa on Wednesday at a small function.

Karnataka Speaker K G Bopaiah accepted late on Tuesday night the resignations of 13 Yeddyurappa loyalists.

Currently, there is no threat to the BJP government in the state, but sources in the KJP said that as the budget session (February 4) of the Karnataka legislative assembly approaches 10 more MLAs are likely to quit the party and join them.

However, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister and BJP state president K S Eshwarappa maintained that the government is safe. Reacting to the resignations tendered by 13 MLAs, Eshwarappa told the media that the government will complete its term and there was no chance of any more MLAs quitting the BJP.

“The claim by Yeddyurappa that he enjoys the support of 60 MLAs from the BJP is hollow. He has not been able to shake the government. There will be no further resignations by the BJP MLAs now or in future and none will join Yeddyurappa’s Karnataka Janata Party,” he added.