Bengaluru: Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Sunday put an end to speculations about a leadership change in Karnataka and said he will continue in the top post as long as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) high command has confidence in him.
“As long as the Delhi high command has confidence in me, I will continue as the Chief Minister. The day they will say they don't want me, I will resign and work day and night for the development of the state,” he told the media here.
Yediyurappa, however, also made it clear that he won’t agree that there was no alternate leader to replace him in the Karnataka BJP.
“There will always be alternate persons in the state and the country. So, I won’t agree that there are no alternate persons in Karnataka but until the high command has confidence in me I will continue as the Chief Minister,” he added.
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Karnataka Revenue Minister R. Ashok voiced his support for Yediyurappa and said “it is time to put a full stop to all the rumours about leadership change in Karnataka”.
“BS Yediyurappa is our leader and he will continue to be the Chief Minister,” he added.
The Congress Party, however, alleged “there is a different strategy behind Chief Minister Yediyurappa’s statement for resignation”.
“He is a strong leader in the BJP and state politics. The BJP went to elections under his leadership and took away our party friends and formed the government,” ANI quoted Karnataka Congress chief D.K. Shivakumar as saying.
The rumours assume significance as there are reports suggesting that several MLAs have expressed their disappointment with the Chief Minister’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic besides continued interference by Yediyurappa’s son and state BJP vice-president BY Vijayendra in state politics.