The BJP’s ‘what next’ quandary in Karnataka

Bengaluru/New Delhi, July 26: The Bharatiya Janata Party is set to stake a claim to form the government in Karnataka. While hectic parleys were on all Thursday, the state leadership did not get the much anticipated call, it was waiting for.

The Central BJP does not want to rush into things and would like more clarity before a claim could be staked to form the government. Adding to the woes of the party, Speaker, Ramesh Kumar disqualified three MLAs in a late night development on Thursday.

A party source said that, the waiting game is being adopted because they want clarity on the rebels before any step could be taken. The loyalty of the rebels is another issue that the party is factoring in on, the source also told OneIndia.

The Speaker has said that the decision regarding the remaining rebels would be taken soon. The rebels who were disqualified are also contemplating moving the Supreme Court.

Another issue on the mind of the Central leadership is the finance bill, which has to be passed by the end of this month. The party may well opt for President's rule to pass the Bill, following which it would take time to get some clarity on the matter.

The BJP is currently engaged in talks with legal experts, before it could take a decision. This decision could be expected in a day or two. During the meeting the State BJP leaders had with party president, Amit Shah, no decision was taken. While Shah was urged to take a decision at the earliest, he however did not indicate the next course of action.

Many senior leaders that this correspondent spoke with said that for now a President's rule seems to be the best option. We need some time before we can come to any conclusion. A government should be not be formed, only for it to collapse a few days later, the leaders also said. However the party must also weigh in on the stature of B S Yeddyurappa. It should not appear that he is being denied the the Chief Minister's post, as this could well anger the Lingayats, which is the core vote bank of the BJP in Karnataka.