Shivakumar amid 'go back' slogans in Mumbai, escorted away from hotel

Mumbai: Karnataka Congress Minister DK Shivakumar on Wednesday reached the hotel in Mumbai, where rebel Congress-JD(S) MLAs are staying, amid slogans of "Go back, Go back - Shivakumar go back".

The slogans were raised by supporters of one of the disgruntled JD(S) MLAs, Narayan Gowda.

Speaking to reporters outside the Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel where the dissident MLAs are staying, Shivakumar said: "I have booked a room here. My friends are staying here. There has been a small problem, we have to hold negotiations. We can't go for a divorce immediately. There is no question of threatening, we love and respect each other."

Mumbai Police escorted Shivakumar away from the gates of the hotel.

Security was tightened outside the hotel after the rebel MLAs wrote a letter to Mumbai Commissioner of Police on Tuesday seeking protection, stating: "We have heard Chief Minister and DK Shivakumar are going to storm the hotel, we feel threatened."

"We do not want to meet him (Shivakumar), kind request to help us in this matter and do not allow them to enter the hotel premises," the letter added.

Among the MLAs who have signed the letter are Shivram Hebbar, Pratap Gowda Patil, BC Patil, ST Somshekar, Ramesh Jarkiholi, Byrati Basavraj, Gopalaiyya, H Vishwanath, Narayan Gowda, and Mahesh Kumutali.

The 13-month old Congress-JD(S) government slumped into crisis following the resignation of 11 MLAs from the membership of the state Assembly last week.

The state Assembly has 225 members, including one nominated MLA. The halfway mark in the 225-member Assembly is 113.

The Congress-JD(S) coalition is making all efforts to protect its government which seems to have fallen short of a majority.

Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy has also claimed that they will overcome the current crisis. All the ministers from the two parties have resigned paving way for the restructuring of the state Cabinet in a bid to accommodate the dissident MLAs.

The Congress party has been constantly accusing the BJP of conspiring to topple Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka.

However, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, in his reply in Parliament, asserted that his party is committed to parliamentary democracy and has no relation with the developments in Karnataka.