ECI has become puppet of central govt: VS Ugrappa

Bengaluru: After the Election Commission told the Supreme Court that former Karnataka Speaker’s order disqualifying 17 MLAs from the Assembly cannot deprive them of their right to contest the upcoming by-polls for 15 constituencies in the state, Congress leader V S Ugrappa said that the EC has become a puppet of the central government.

Speaking on the issue Ugrappa said that the EC’s decision is a result of the recent meeting Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa had with Home Minister Amit Shah and other senior party leaders in New Delhi.

He further added “The ECI appeared before the SC and said that it does not have any objection to allowing the disqualified Karnataka MLAs to contest the by-polls. It clearly shows that the election body has become a puppet of the central government.”

The then Speaker had disqualified these 17 MLAs which eventually led to the fall of the Congress-JD(S) coalition government headed by the then chief minister H D Kumaraswamy.

Kumaraswamy resigned as the chief minister after losing a trust vote, which paved the way for the BJP-led government in the southern state under Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa.

The disqualified lawmakers have approached the apex court, challenging Kumar’s decision to disqualify them.

Some of them have contended in their pleas that the decision taken by Kumar before resigning as the Speaker was an entirely illegal, arbitrary and mala fide exercise of his power under the 10th Schedule of the Constitution. They have also questioned Kumar’s decision to reject their resignations by holding that those were not voluntary and genuine.