HC reserves orders on rebel BJP MLAs'' case

Bangalore, Oct 21 (PTI) Prolonging the suspense, the Karnataka High Court today reserved its orders on petitions filed by 11 rebel BJP MLAs challenging their disqualification by Speaker K G Bopaiah after they withdrew support to the B S Yeddyurappa government.After a two-day hearing, judge V G Sabhahit reserved orders in the case which was referred to him after a split verdict by a Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice N Kumar, on Monday.Khehar had upheld Bopaiah''s order disqualifying the 11 BJP rebels but Kumar had set it aside.As the legal battle continued, Congress, which has launched an all-out offensive with JDS against the first BJP government in the south, lost another MLA as Narayanaswamy resigned his Assembly membership, making him the second legislator after S V Ramachandra to desert the party in two days.Narayanaswamy, representing Bangarpet in Kolar district, yesterday submitted his resignation, which was accepted today by the Speaker, Secretariat sources said.He is the third from the opposition to resign from the assembly in a week. On Friday, JDS MLA from Chennapatna M C Ashwath resigned.The Congress strength has now come down to 71 from 73 and that of the JDS to 27 from 28 in the 224-member assembly with the BJP having 106 members including the Speaker.In the High Court today, former Attorney General Soli Sorabjee and Satyapal Jain, counsels for Yeddyurappa, argued that the Speaker not only relied on October six letter of the 11 MLAs withdrawing support to the government but also on their conduct. Bopaiah''s October 10 disqualification order was "not perverse at all".The 11 legislators have not denied Bopaiah''s statements with regard to their entering into negotiations with other political parties, Sorabjee contended. "None of the (Speaker''s) statements have been assailed or contested".He sought to reject the argument of the 11 MLAs that they only wanted the Yeddyurappa''s removal and that they are ready to support BJP government headed by anybody other than Yeddyurappa.On the MLAs'' letter withdrawing support to the Government led by Yeddyurappa, Sorabjee argued it was enough to mention only the government, "there is no need to mention that it''s headed by so and so, which is only descriptive".MORE PTI BH RS MSR BN RA