Bengaluru: A rare situation is currently transpiring in Karnataka, where Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is facing opposition from its own minister.
Karnataka rural development minister K S Eshwarappa on Wednesday complained to the governor against chief minister B S Yediyurappa, alleging direct interference in the affairs of his department.
Eshwarappa, a senior BJP leader from Shivamogga and who had been a longtime associate of Yediyurappa, met governor Vajubhai Vala and submitted a five-page letter on “serious lapses and authoritarian way of running the administration” by the chief minister.
In his letter, Eshwarappa said he was in “pain” to bring to the governor’s notice some of the recent actions of the chief minister relating to his department, which amounts to ‘direct interference’ in the affairs of ministers in-charge of departments.
Citing instances, Eshwarappa said the Yediyurappa recently ‘ignored’ him by sanctioning huge funds on the request of MLAs to the tune of Rs 774 crore under RDPR Department by bypassing minister-in-charge.
Eshwarappa said he had brought the “serious lapses” to the notice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, home minister Amit Shah, national general secretary in charge of Karnataka and national general secretary organization, other senior party leaders, highlighting the CM’s style of functioning in “blatant violation of rules”.
“I request your kind self to advise the chief minister to adhere to the rules and practices followed in the discharge of the duties by the cabinet minister and further to take into confidence the cabinet colleagues and adopt policy of non- interference in discharge of constitutional responsibilities by the cabinet colleagues,” he said in his letter.
Now, BJP general secretary Arun Singh on Thursday disapproved of Karnataka minister K S Eshwarappa writing a letter to the governor against the chief minister’s style of functioning, saying this was not an appropriate step.
“If a minister has a problem, he should talk to the chief minister. Writing a letter to the governor is not the right way,” Singh, who is the BJP’s in-charge for Karnataka, told reporters here.
(With agency inputs)