2nd Cong MLA resigns from K'taka Assembly in 2 days

Bangalore: The Opposition Congress suffered another setback on Thursday when one of its legislators resigned from his Karnataka Assembly membership, making him the second from the party to do so in two days.

The Karnataka Congress expelled two rebel MLAs, SV Ramachandra and Narayanaswamy.

Narayanaswamy, who represented Bangarpet in Kolar district, yesterday submitted his resignation which was accepted Thursday by the assembly Speaker K G Bopaiah, secretariat sources said.

He is the third from the opposition parties to resign from the the assembly in a week's time. SV Ramachandra, who represented Congress Jagalur constituency yesterday quit the Karnataka assembly, while on last Friday JD (S) MLA from Chennapatna M C Ashwath resigned from the house.

Last evening, apprehending desertion of some of their legislators to the Bharatiya Janata Party, Congress leaders and MLAs laid siege to Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa's residence and asked the ruling party not to indulge in "Operation Lotus" which it alleged was directed at poaching

opposition MLAs to remain in power.

The Congress strength has now come down to 71 from 73 and that of the JD (S) to 27 from 28 in the 224-member assembly with the BJP having 106 members including the Speaker.

Eleven rebel BJP MLAs and five independents, who withdrew support to the first ever saffron government in the south, have been disqualified from the assembly membership, an issue which is now before the High Court.

Meanwhile, the Legislative Committee appointed by Speaker Bopaiah to go into the unruly scenes during the trust vote on October 11, on Thursday issued notices to 15 MLAs belonging to Opposition Congress and JDS.

The committee, headed by BJP MLA Appachu Ranjan, in its notice, has asked these MLAs to appear before it on October 28, Legislature secretariat sources said.

Those who got the notices are Puttaraju, Zameer Ahmed Khan, Bandeppa Kashempur, M T Krishnappa, H C Balakrishna, K P Bacchegowda, K Raju (all JDS), N A Harris, B K Sangameshwar, Suresh Gowda, H P Manjunath, U T Khader, P M Ashok, Rahim Khan and Kakasab Patil.

Pandemonium prevailed in the House on October 11 when Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa moved a trust motion.