‘Operation Lotus’ at Play in Karnataka? Experts Weigh in

Two independent MLAs withdrew their support to the Congress-JD(S) government in Karnataka on Tuesday.

BS Yeddyurappa and HD Kumaraswamy. 

(Photo: Harsh Sahani/The Quint)

With two independent MLAs in the Karnataka Assembly withdrawing their support to the Congress-JD(S) coalition government, all eyes are on whether there is an ‘Operation Lotus’ underway in the state.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy seemed unfazed after the two MLAs withdrew their support, saying that he was relaxed. “If two MLAs withdraw their support, what will be the numbers? I’m totally relaxed. I know my strength. I am enjoying (watching) whatever is going on in the media in the past week,” he said.

Catch all the live updates on the Karnataka drama here.

Amid the speculation over the BJP purportedly making efforts to topple the government in Karnataka, Dhanya Rajendran, editor-in-chief of The News Minute, told BloombergQuint that “this attempt definitely looks more serious than the last few attempts made by the BJP”, but added that party is going to find the going very difficult.

Meanwhile, senior journalist Ratan Mani Lal said:

“These efforts in Karnataka are part of the preparations for the Lok Sabha elections… This would be considered as a big morale booster for the BJP if they manage to pull a coup in Karnataka, although it’s not easy for the BJP to do anything of this kind.”

Ratan Mani Lal, Journalist

The Congress-JD(S) coalition, along with the support of the solitary BSP MLA, has 117 seats in the House, out of a total of 224 seats. Meanwhile, the BJP MLAs with the Independents together account for 106 seats. The magic number to form the government in Karnataka is 113 seats.