Karnataka: 5 things to know about the newly appointed pro-tem speaker K G Bopaiah

Bopaiah had once faced the ire of Supreme Court for favouring BS Yeddyurappa.

File Image of Yeddyurappa and KG Bopaiah/ Courtesy: PTI

New Delhi: Karnataka Governor Vajubhai R. Vala on Friday appointed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA K.G. Bopaiah as pro-tem speaker ahead of floor test tomorrow in the state assembly, breaking the convention of appointing the senior-most legislator. Bopaiah had once faced the ire of Supreme Court for favouring BS Yeddyurappa. Here are some lesser known facts about K.G. Bopaiah

• Bopaiah, 62, is a three-time legislator from Virajpet seat in Kodagu region, 260 km from Bengaluru.
• He was closely associated with the RSS and the Sangh Parivar since his childhood. Also, he was an active member of the ABVP during his college days.
• He was Speaker during the Bharatiya Janata Party rule in the state from 2008-13.
• Bopaiah is known to be a trusted ally of BS Yeddyurappa.
• In October 2011, then speaker Bopaiah had disqualified 11 rebel MLAs who were against BS Yeddyurappa’s leadership and had written a letter to Governor withdrawing their support to the BJP government. Bopaiah had thus played a major role in BJP’s survival in Karnataka but he received flak from Supreme Court over his action.

Bopaiah will be administering oath to all newly elected legislators on Saturday ahead of the floor test.