25 MLAs Set on Australia Tour To Delay Power-Sharing

Bengaluru: Some 25 legislators went on a trip to Australia and New Zealand between February 16 and March 3, and it was stated that the foreign trip, which was said to be organized by Animal Husbandry Minister K. Venkatesh, was to examine animal husbandry activities in both countries known for milk production.

It is speculated that the tour is to delay the power sharing between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who are busy with the power transfer struggle, and to give Siddaramaiah an advantage over Shivakumar.

Of the 30 shortlisted MLAs, the numbers are said to have come down to 25. K. Venkatesh is a close aide of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and both belong to Mysuru district.

Interestingly, the study tour team in question mostly consisted of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah loyalists, while Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s supporters rejected the invitation to join the tour team. Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar engage in a power-sharing fight. While Shivakumar, who is the front-runner for the CM post, has reportedly demanded that he be made the Prime Minister as a power-sharing agreement, Siddaramaiah is reportedly in no mood to give up the post.

However, there is confusion about covering tour expenses on the Australia and New Zealand tour. During his tour of Australia and New Zealand, Prime Minister Siddaramaiah said, “Some MLAs and MLCs go on tour” and asked, “Can I say no to them when they go on tour with their money?”

But former minister Puttaranga Shetty, Congress MLA and Siddaramaiah supporter, said, “The tour is organized by the animal husbandry department to examine animal husbandry activities in Australia and New Zealand.” He dismissed the possibility that the tour could have any political significance, especially given that the issue of power-sharing is doing the rounds in Karnataka.

Shivakumar supporter HC Balakrishna said, “I was also invited to join the tour team but I refused citing work at Magadi, my meeting seat.” Balakrishna did not attach special importance to the MLAs’ tour to Australia and New Zealand.

Sources told Deccan Chronicle that the Australia and New Zealand tour was a move against DK Shivakumar’s resort policies. Shivakumar is said to be planning to accommodate some MLAs in a resort to garner support to claim the Chief Minister’s post. “The move to send some legislators on a tour could be a tactic by Siddaramaiah’s supporters to obstruct the power-sharing issue, at least for now,” sources said.