BANGALORE: Following submission of the report on illegal mining from the Karnataka Lokayukta, which has indicted Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa and other ministers, including the Reddy brothers, on Wednesday, all eyes are on Governor H R Bhardwaj now, who has allegedly been hostile towards the saffron government ever since it first assumed office in the state.Speaking to the media after submitting his report, Lokayukta Santosh Hegde said that he had recommended criminal proceedings against the CM, who was found guilty of abetting illegal mining in the state, which has cost the state exchequer over `16,085 crore.“I recommend that the Governor must initiate action under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act,” Justice Hegde said.Lokayukta officials also submitted a copy of the report to the Raj Bhavan under sub-section (3) of Section 12 after a declaration was made against the Chief Minister into a complaint as Governor is the competent authority over Chief Minister.It was not too long ago that the Governor had to beat retreat after recommending to the Union Government to dissolve the state BJP government and keep the Assembly in suspended animation immediately after a twomember Supreme Court bench quashed the Karantaka Assembly Speaker K G Bopaiah’s order to disqualify 16 legislators, including 11 ruling BJP members.The Governor had taken the extreme step to dissolve the government after taking cognizance of the alleged indictment of both the Speaker and the Chief Minister in the Supreme Court judgment in May this year.However, after over two weeks, the Union Government had rejected the Governor’s report to dissolve the House and sent only an ‘advisory’ under Article 356 of the Constitution.With the alleged indictment of the Chief Minister and four of his Cabinet colleagues, Bhardwaj may issue orders to initiate criminal proceedings against the Chief Minister and seek his resignation.This could lead to a Constitutional crisis if Yeddyurappa refuses to resign from his post.Meanwhile, in a related development Bhardwaj had summoned state chief secretary S V Ranganath and reportedly discussed the ramifications of the recommendations in the Lokayukta’s report. Raj Bhavan sources said that Ranganath was with Bhardwaj for more than 30 minutes.As for the man at the centre of all the action, Yeddyurappa, he is upset about being indicted in the report and is presently in New Delhi to hold talks with the BJP’s central leadership.
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