Congress calls down on reports of 'cracks' in ruling coalition in Karnataka

Expressing confidence that the coalition government in Karnataka would survive its full five-year term, Congress state chief Dinesh Gundu Rao Thursday accused some JD(S) leaders of making statements without understanding the situation on the ground. The Congress was following the "coalition dharma", he said, adding that the party wants to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha polls together with the JD(S). "Hundred per cent it (the government) will survive, there are no issues," Rao told reporters in response to a question about the government surviving for five years.

On contesting with JD(S) for Lok Sabha polls, he said, "certain things" would have to be discussed at the top leadership level. "I do not see why there will be a problem. Some of the JD(S) leaders also, I think, have been speaking without really understanding what really is happening," he said. JD(S) workers and leaders have been openly expressing their unhappiness against the Congress on a host of issues, including the appointment of heads to boards and corporations that are yet to be finalised.

Recently, JD(S) minister H D Revanna had said his brother and chief minister H D Kumaraswamy would "tolerate things as long as he can." Conceding that there are certain "minor issues" within the coalition, Rao said the Congress' decision is to follow coalition dharma and fight elections together. "We don't have any thought about functioning unilaterally, we have not done it also. Some people without knowing things are speaking. Our decisions and conduct are in favour of our intention that is- this government has to be stable and complete five years. There is no compromise in it," he added.

JD(S) workers and local leaders recently asked their leadership to contest all 28 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the coming parliamentary polls, unhappy over the Congress' "big brother attitude" in the ruling coalition in Karnataka. Clarifying about fighting elections together, JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda has said his party was looking for 12 of 28 seats, to which Congress has maintained that they are yet to start any discussion on seat sharing. Clarifying that the Congress has not taken any decision unilaterally, Rao said discussions were yet to take place on appointments of heads for two boards only, which were not allotted to anybody.

According to Congress sources, the party has forwarded its list of 19 legislators to head boards and corporations to the Chief Minister. The move has irked the JD(S) leadership as they were allegedly not consulted. Also, Congress recommending some of its legislators as heads to boards and corporations that come under departments controlled by JD(S) ministers, has angered the regional party. Rao also advised Ramesh Jarkiholi, who is sulking over being dropped from the cabinet, to speak to the Congress high command and general secretary K C Venugopal, rather then speaking to others.

Jarkiholi has threatened to quit as Congress MLA, and reports suggest that he was planning to join the BJP, and has also held discussions in this regard. Satish Jarkiholi, who was recently inducted into the cabinet and given the task to pacify his brother Ramesh, met the KPCC president Thursday and is said to have indicated about Ramesh's firmness in quitting the party, the sources said. Defending mister D K Shivakumar's open invitation to BJP workers and leaders in Channapatna to join Congress, Rao said, asking to join the party was different from "BJP trying poach, blackmail, threaten, buyout and purchasing our MLAs."

(With inputs from agencies.)