Karnataka Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar resigns soon after BS Yediyurappa wins floor test

Karnataka Assembly speaker KR Ramesh Kumar resigned on Monday soon after Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa won the floor test at Vidhana Soudha through voice vote. Earlier, there were reports that the BJP leaders in the state were planning to move a motion of no confidence against Speaker. KR Ramesh Kumar on July 28 disqualified the remaining 14 rebel MLAs effective under the anti-defection law. 

Moving the confidence motion, Yediyurappa said, “When Siddaramaiah and HD Kumaraswamy were CMs they didn't indulge in vindictive politics. Administration has failed and we'll set it right. I assurance the House that we won't indulge in vindictive politics either. I believe in forget and forgive" Striking somewhat reconciliatory note, senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah said, “We discussed HD Kumaraswamy's confidence motion over 4 days. I too participated in that and I don't wish to speak about it. I could've spoken about circumstances under which Yediyurappa became CM.I wish him well and welcome his assurance that he'll work for people.”

The outcome of the trust vote was on expected line. The BJP was anyway expected to have a smooth sail with the trust vote, as the disqualification of 17 rebel MLAs by the Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar on Sunday has reduced the effective strength of the 225-member Assembly to 208. The magic figure for simple majority is 105, equivalent to the strength of the BJP, which also commands the support of an Independent.

Who is KR Ramesh?

- K Ramayya Ramesh Kumar is an Indian politician and Congress leader from the state of Karnataka. Kumar, a five-term member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, stepped into his political career in 70s with the Indian National Congress.

- Later, he joined the Janata Party in the mid-1980s, and joined the Janata Dal in the 1990s. In the early 2000s he came back into the Indian National Congress.

- In 1978, Kumar beat RG Narayanareddy by over 18000 votes to win his first Legislative Assembly Election from the Srinivaspur Assembly seat in Karnataka.

- So far, Kumar has fought a total of 10 Assembly elections from the state. In the 2018 Assembly elections, Kumar contested the Srinivaspur seat on a Congress ticket and won successively by beating GK Venkata Shiva Reddy of Janata Dal by 10373 votes.

- In June 2016, Kumar was inducted into the Siddaramaiah led Karnataka government as the Health and Family Welfare Minister. He was elected unopposed as the speaker of 15th Assembly of Karnataka after JDS and Congress forged an alliance to form the government in the state.