The sessions of the State Legislature in the recent past have not been without drama, but the one commencing from Friday promises to be marked by more of it than the usual staple between the governing coalition (Congress and JD-S) and the Opposition BJP. While the former is struggling to hang on despite the number of MLAs plummeting — 100 on last count — with a slew of resignations, the latter is bent on bringing down the government, arguing that it has been reduced to a minority.
The session begins amid whips issued by the Congress and the JD(S) to its legislators to attend the proceedings of the House without fail and Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar seeking more time to scrutinise the resignation letters of the 16 MLAs (13 from the Congress and three from the JD-S). These legislators, who were facing the threat of disqualification, appeared before the Speaker on Thursday as per the directions of the Supreme Court to resubmit their resignation letters. The Speaker said he cannot decide on them in a hurry, making their future uncertain.