Bengaluru: The BJP-JD(S) opposition alliance appears determined to continue its boycott when the monsoon session of the legislature resumes Monday and insist on the resignation of planning and statistics minister B Nagendra.The decision comes amid differences within the alliance over the protest. While some JD(S) functionaries have privately questioned whether the demand for Nagendra’s resignation can lead to a logical conclusion, there is also scepticism within sections of BJP’s legislature party. However, BJP brass has decided to press ahead, a decision that could lead to a wash out the entire session.Opposition leader R Ashoka said the onus is on the govt to resolve the issue. “I have hope Congress will secure Nagendra’s resignation by Monday and make way for discussions on issues such as NICE Road, Bidadi Township and drought,” he said. “It is the responsibility of the govt to conduct the legislature session. Some 40 to 50 Congress legislators themselves are not attending the session because of Nagendra’s induction into cabinet.”Opposition leader in the legislative council Chalavadi Narayanswamy also accused the govt of refusing to act against Nagendra despite what he described as “concrete evidence” of his involvement in the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribe Development Corporation scam.“If this is the attitude of the govt in this case, we can understand what their answers will be on issues such as the Bidadi Township or NICE Road,” he said. “We will continue our one-point agenda of protesting till Nagendra is dropped from the cabinet.”But functionaries from both JD(S) and BJP have privately suggested the alliance may have boxed itself into a corner.“There is no turning back now,” said some members legislators of both parties. “We don’t think the govt will yield. We may have played into the hands of the govt who want to scuttle discussions on Bidadi Township and NICE Road.”Meanwhile, Congress functionaries say BJP’s decision to boycott the session is about settling political scores rather than a stand against corruption.“Because Congress made BJP look bad over the CJP protests in New Delhi and forced the ouster of Dharmendra Pradhan as Union education minister, the party high command has given the Karnataka unit orders to go after Nagendra,” said a senior legislator.Parliamentary affairs minister Krishna Byre Gowda urged the opposition to withdraw its protest and participate in legislative debates.“It is unfortunate BJP is sacrificing the legislative session on a dead issue that is not even a people’s issue,” Byre Gowda told TOI. “Legislature is the forum for both the govt and opposition to debate public issues. While indulging in politics is an integral part of the process, it cannot usurp public interest. I hope BJP reconsiders its stand in public interest.”Sources say legislative council chairman Saleem Ahmed and assembly speaker GS Patil are likely to convene business advisory committee meetings, where they will urge the opposition to withdraw its protest.
