BENGALURU: Congress leaders are reportedly drawing up a new strategy-involve pontiffs and heads of various mathas to cajole rebel legislators to return to the Legislative Assembly on Monday, and vote in support of the confidence motion moved by Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.
Sources close to CLP leader, Siddaramaiah told Deccan Chronicle the strategy is being evolved by the former chief minister, Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal, KPCC president Dinesh Gundurao and KPCC working president Eshwar Khandre at an undisclosed destination.
These leaders are confident that they will succeed with the new plan to persuade rebel legislators belonging to both Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) to participate in proceedings of the Assembly on Monday.
“It is a secret plan, and can’t be shared with the media, but you will see how is executed over the next two days,” sources added.
Sources replied in the negative when asked whether a leader of either Congress or Janata Dal (Secular) would attempt to meet these rebel legislators in Mumbai in the aftermath of an embarrassing experience endured by water resources minister D.K. Shivakumar, higher education minister G.T. Deve Gowda and two JD(S) legislators when they were not allowed to enter the hotel by Mumbai police let alone speak with rebel legislators.
On Friday, Mumbai police thwarted an attempt by a Congress legislator of Maharashtra to meet ‘ailing’ Kagawada MLA Shrimant Patil at a private hospital in Mumbai. If such treatment was meted out to a legislator belonging to Maharashtra, it could be worse for politicians from the state to attempt a meeting, sources added.
Meanwhile, sources close to Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy ruled out the leader's visit to Mumbai to meet and convince legislators of his party and Congress to return to the Assembly.
“The Congress is free to send its leaders, ministers or MLAs to Mumbai to persuade rebel legislators to return, but the Janata Dal (Secular) will not ask a minister or legislator to go to Mumbai and meet the rebels,” sources added.
Sources said the Chief Minister cannot afford a major embarrassment of being stopped outside the hotel in Mumbai where these rebel legislators are holed up.
