Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar to meet rebel MLAs in Mumbai tomorrow: Sources

Karnataka Congress strongman DK Shivakumar is likely to visit Mumbai on Wednesday to meet the rebel MLAs who are allegedly confined in a hotel there, according to sources. Earlier in the day, 12 rebel MLAs from the ruling Congress-JD(S) coalition had cut short their trip to Goa and returned to Mumbai from Satara in Maharashtra.

They were reportedly heading towards Goa. They were said to be taking legal opinions after Karnataka Assembly Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar rejected the resignation of eight MLAs, saying they were not in order.

A serious political crisis engulfed the southern state after 13 rebel Congress and JDS lawmakers submitted their resignations on Saturday. This turned uglier after another independent lawmaker R Roshan Baig pulled back his support and resigned from the Assembly.

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While the Congress party has been alleging poaching by the BJP, the saffron party has denied any role in the happenings. However, the BJP has decided to hold a protest against the Speaker’s decision to reject the resignations of 8 MLAs by the Speaker.

Meanwhile, a state Congress leader Karnataka Congress leader Zameer Ahmad has made sensational accusations against the BJP. Ahmad claimed that the BJP “kidnapped” Congress-JDS MLAs and were holding them in the hotel at gunpoint.

“BJP has kidnapped our MLAs and is keeping them at gunpoint. Their mobile phones have been seized. They're not even allowed to talk to their family members. If set free, the MLAs will return to us. 4-5 people each are keeping a watch on them,” Ahmad claimed.