Kumaraswamy invited to form Govt
by K.G.Vasuki

     Bangalore: Karnataka Governor T N Chaturvedi on Saturday invited rebel Janata Dal (Secular) leader H D Kumaraswamy (Kumaranna) to form the next government in the state, soon after Chief Minister N Dharam Singh had submitted his resignation. Talking to newsmen here, Chaturvedi said that he had decided to invite Kumaraswamy to form his government at the earliest, as he believed that on the basis of the written letters of support from the JD (S) and the BJP, Kumaraswamy was in a position to form the government.

    "As I believe, on the basis of written letters of support from the BJP and JD (S), that he is in a position to command majority in the House," said Chaturvedi. He said he has also asked Kumaraswamy (Kumaranna) to prove his majority on the floor of the house within eight days of his ascension in office (February 4). Earlier, this afternoon, Dharam Singh sent in his resignation letter to Chaturvedi through his Principal Secretary S V Ranganath. Chaturvedi accepted Singh's resignation, but asked him to continue in a interim capacity till alternative arrangements are made. Dharam Singh told reporters after his meeting with Chaturvedi that he had asked for "one more opportunity" to prove his majority in the Assembly, but the Governor cited "technical reasons" for his inability to do so, asking him to tender his resignation within an hour. Dharam Singh had further said that he was not a person" who will cling to power". "Considering the totality of circumstances and with the Governor pleading inability to grant more time, I have decided to resign," Dharam Singh said. While he refrained from blaming former Prime Minister and JD (S) leader H D Deve Gowda, he openly attacked Assembly Speaker Sri Krishna, accusing him of not giving him the opportunity to move the motion of confidence. He also questioned Krishna's decision to recognise Kumaraswamy as JD (S) legislature party leader.

H D Kumaraswamy: From film producer to Chief Minister
by K.G.Vasuki

    Bangalore: H .D Kumaraswamy (Kumaranna), the youngest son of former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, is a well-known producer of Kannada films, and now, will become Karnataka's 18th Chief Minister. Prior to his political baptism, Kumaraswamy produced hit films with top stars like Ghalate Aliyandru, Suryavamsha, Premotsava and the recent Chandra Chakori (which ran for 500 days). Kumaraswamy was also an exhibitor and distributor of films and is known to habour an ambition to start a Kannada television channel called 'Kannada Kasturi. Forty-six-year-old Kumaraswamy has now scripted the biggest drama of his life by walking out on his father and shaking the foundations of the N Dharam Singh Government.

    Born in 1959, the rebel Janata Dal (Secular) leader Kumaraswamy completed his education in Bangalore. He then charted a career in film distribution, even as his father H D Deve Gowda and older brother Revanna pursued their respective political ambitions. He released his first film in 2000. He was elected the president of the Karnataka Cinema Theatre Owners Association in 2002, a position he still holds.

   Kumaraswamy's political career has been a roller coaster ride, closely tracking the political fortunes of his father. He won the Kanakapura Lok Sabha seat in 1996 without any political experience, at a time when his father was the prime minister. But he lost from the seat in 1998 after Deve Gowda's reign was over. Kumaraswamy had to face another setback in 1999, losing the Sathanur Assembly seat to arch rival D K Shivakumar. He won the Ramanagaram Assembly seat in 2004, but was left out of the ministry. He became working President of state JD (S) in the same year. Kumaraswamy then took advantage of the growing discontent within the JD (S), on the issue of the Congress extending support to the party formed by JD (S) rival Siddaramaiah. The producer-turned-politician was reportedly encouraged by his astrologer, and was told he would never become chief minister if he delayed making a move. Kumaraswamy now seems all set to form a government with the support of his MLAs' group. The going has been good for the rebel leader so far. Kumaranna, as he is known in Karnataka, was known to function as a kind of front office for his father when Deve Gowda was prime minister in Delhi, and also contested the parliamentary election successfully two years ago from the same region.

Karnataka CM Dharam Singh resigns

    Bangalore: Curtains came down on the 20-month old Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition government in Karnataka a short while ago, with Chief Minister N Dharam Singh submitting his resignation to the State Governor T.N. Chaturvedi. Dharam Singh submitted his resignation to Chaturvedi this afternoon after an almost one hour meeting with Congress party leaders here. He is expected to address a news conference shortly, where he will make a formal announcement. It is believed that Chaturvedi had asked Dharam Singh to resign as the deadline for proving his majority on the floor of the Assembly had passed on Friday.

    The Congress had on Saturday said that it would prefer to sit in the opposition in the Karnataka Assembly, rather than make repeated attempts to save its coalition government in the state. All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary and in- charge of party affairs in Karnataka A K Anthony said here today "We will sit in the Opposition. We will be with people". After meeting Karnataka Chief Minister N Dharam Singh and state Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Antony further said that the Congress would not allow imposition of President's Rule in Karnataka. While chaotic scenes dominated the trust vote in the house on Friday, Dharam Singh is reported to have met the Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court Cyriac Joseph and the Governor T N Chaturvedi at Raj Bhavan to decide the options available to them before taking a final decision. Meanwhile, the Congress-led Government has opted to seek another opportunity to prove its majority on the floor of the house. Janata Dal (Secular) leader H. D. Kumaraswamy is also likely to meet Governor Chaturvedi today and stake a claim to form the next government in the state. The Speaker of the Karnataka Assembly, Sri Krishna, had to adjourn the House sine die on Friday after Congress MLA s moved into the Well of the House and started agitating. Pandemonium broke out in the Karnataka Assembly on Friday during the crucial confidence motion of the Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) Government. The motion could not be carried as the House was adjourned twice, once when members of the House opposed the presence of special observers of Karnataka Governor Chaturvedi and for a second time, when Dharam Singh refused to move the confidence motion, citing that the House was not in order. The Congress has proposed the adoption of the "Maharashtra model" of governance to the Janata Dal (Secular) leader and former Prime Minister, H.D.Deva Gowda, which has not been accepted, judging from Deve Gowda's resignation as JD (S) chief.

    Meanwhile, Constitutional expert Subhash Kashyap had said that Dharam Singh should resign gracefully or the Governor should invite the Opposition to form the next government. Friday's development that will have far greater repercussion on the national politics as BJP along with the rebel JD (S) will be forming the government in Karnataka for the first time. In the 224-member assembly, the BJP has 79 members and its electoral ally JD (U) five. The JD (S) rebel group has 39 members with five independents supporting them -- all together constituting 128, well above the 113 mark required to command majority.

Dharam Singh - a profile

     Bangalore (Karnataka): N Dharam Singh was born on December 25, 1936, and was the 17th Chief Minister of Karnataka. He was sworn in as chief minister on May 28, 2004. He was born in Nelogi village of Jewargi taluk. Having passed out of the Hyderabad-based Osmania University, he was an advocate by profession and took to politics at a later stage in his life. During his nearly four-decade-long political career, Singh was a Councilor of the Gulbarga City Municipal Council in 1968. He then became a Member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly in 1972 and was a member of the State Backward Classes Commission. Before becoming the Chief Minister of Karnataka, he also served as minister of Home Affairs, Excise, Social Welfare, Urban Development and Revenue in the state. Hailing from the Rajput community in Karnataka, Singh is one of the front-ranking leaders of North Karnataka region, winning from the backward Jewargi Assembly constituency for eight consecutive terms. Endowed with vast political experience, Singh has been recognized as one of the Congress party's top organizers. Apart from his four-decade-long stint in Karnataka State politics, Singh was a Member of the Indian Parliament from the Gulbarga Parliamentary constituency in 1980. He gave up the Gulbarga Lok Sabha seat to accommodate C M Stephen, the then Union Home Minister in the Indira Gandhi Cabinet, after he lost the election in Delhi to Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He is the second leader from Gulbarga to have become the chief minister of Karnataka after late Veerendra Patil.

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