Ahead of floor test, Karnataka Congress leader says he will withdraw resignation

Bengaluru: In some relief to the embattled coalition government in Karnataka, Congress MLA Ramalinga Reddy Wednesday said he has decided to withdraw his resignation from the Assembly and will vote in favour of the trust vote to be sought by Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy.

I will take part in the Assembly session on Thursday and vote in favour of the party. I will continue to remain in the party and serve as MLA, he told PTI here.

Reddy, a former minister, is among the 13 Congress and three JD(S) MLAs who have tendered their resignations while two independent legislators have withdrawn their support to the 14-month old Kumaraswamy government, leaving it tottering on the brink of collapse.

The survival of the Congress-JD(S) government hangs precariously on the eve of the trust vote with the Supreme Court Wednesday holding that the 15 rebel Congress-JD(S) MLAs, who had moved it, cannot be compelled to participate in the proceedings of the ongoing Assembly session.

While most of the rebel MLAs have been staying in Mumbai, Reddy chose to be in the city amid reports that Congress was trying to pacify him.

The party had also left him out while moving the Assembly Speaker for disqualification of the rebel MLAs, saying he was an "exception." Reddy too had maintained he would remain in Congress and he has resigned only from the Assembly.

Hours ahead of the floor test Thursday, Reddy said he would withdraw his resignation letter submitted to the Speaker on July 6.

The other rebel MLAs camping in Mumbai said there was no question of stepping back on their resignations or attending the session.

If the resignations of the 15 MLAs are accepted or if they stay away from the assembly, the ruling coalitions tally will plummet to 102, reducing the government to a minority.