Karnataka political drama saw no end even on Friday, despite the two deadlines set by Governor Vajubhai Vala to prove the Congress-JD(S) coalition government's majority in the Assembly.
As the high drama continued to plague the House, the Speaker adjourned the Assembly till Monday, saying trust vote will be held that day only.
Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy Friday missed both the deadlines -- 1:30 PM and 6 PM -- set by Governor Vala to decide the fate of the coalition government.
"As the debate on the confidence motion moved by the Chief Minister on Thursday did not conclude in the Assembly, Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar could not conduct the floor test by the 6 PM deadline set by the Governor for the second time," an official said.
The Governor directed the Chief Minister to prove the majority by 6 PM after the 1:30 PM deadline he set on Thursday night lapsed, as the discussions on the motion did not conclude by then even as the Speaker adjourned the House till 3 PM.
In response to the demand of the ruling Congress and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) lawmakers to allow them to participate in the discussions, the Speaker said that he would extend the session's time for a couple of hours, but pleaded with them to end the debate by Friday and conclude the floor test.
The opposition BJP insisted on conducting the floor test by Friday night itself.
Kumaraswamy and Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Krishna Byre Gowda appealed to the Speaker to extend the debate to Monday, assuring him to complete the floor test.
Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Siddaramaiah also sought time till Monday.
"The Chief Minister failed to prove majority in the Assembly by 1:30 PM, the deadline set by the Governor on Thursday," opposition BJP leader B.S. Yeddyurappa told the Speaker after the first deadline lapsed.
When the former three-time BJP Chief Minister urged the Speaker to conduct the floor test forthwith, Kumar said that he would do it after the discussions on the confidence motion were completed by the treasury and the opposition members.
Resuming the inconclusive debate on the motion, stalled six times due to ruckus between the lawmakers of the ruling allies and the BJP, Kumaraswamy said that it was for the Speaker to decide on the Governor's order as to when he should prove the majority on the floor of the House.
"It is not for me to decide by when I should prove the majority. It is the Speaker who is the custodian of the House and has the supreme authority to decide how the session should be conducted," said Kumaraswamy.
A restive BJP told the Speaker not to allow the ruling combine to further delay the floor test as there was no stay on it from the Supreme Court on the trial of strength.
Rejecting the BJP's demand, ruling lawmakers asked the Governor to go back and accused him of being a BJP agent who was converting the Raj Bhavan into a BJP office.
About 20 legislators, including 14 from the Congress, 3 from the JD-S and 3 Independents, were absent in the 225-member Karnataka Assembly when the session began on Friday.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy moved the Supreme Court, saying that Governor Vajubhai Vala cannot dictate to the Assembly the manner in which the debate on the confidence motion has to be taken up.
The Chief Minister also sought clarification on the apex court's July 17 order which said that the 15 rebel MLAs cannot be compelled to attend the proceedings of the House.
(IANS)
