All is not well in Yeddyurappa's kingdom

Bangalore, May 30: Bharatiya Janata Party activists today indulged in violence in protest against denial of berth in the Cabinet to senior party leader and former Minister Jagadish Shetter.

Angry activists pelted stones on State Transport buses even as Hubli-Dharwad City Municipal Corporation (HDMC) Mayor and Council members threatening to resign enmass in protest. Sporadic incidents of the stone pelting in Keshwapur and Vidyanagar areas were reported, police said. Leader of BJP in HDMC Veeranna Savadi said that all the members would resign enmass if Mr Shettar was not included in Cabinet. He said it was the injustice meted out to North Karnataka region by Mr Yeddyurappa.

A Mysore report said Shankaralinge Gowda, another disgruntled legislator, came out strongly against the state leadership for denying him a chance to become a minister. An emotional Mr Gowda told UNI over telephone that this was second time he had been denied the berth despite being a four-time MLA.

"Despite winning the elections in a impressive fashion and that too fourth time on trot I was not considered. What is the yardstick my leaders are using to choose the ministers. I have been the disciplined soldier of the party for over two decades," he said.

He however said that he would not put any 'hurdles' to Mr Yeddyurappa's government and continue to work for the party and serve the people of his constituency on his 'own strength'.

He regretted that Mysore district, a bastion of the BJP for a long time, did not get representation in the cabinet.

Mr Gowda is only person belonging to the strong vokkaliga community to win an election for BJP in the Cauvery belt.

UNI