Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa announces resignation on second anniversary

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Monday said that he would resign post-lunch.

He made the announcement on the two-year-anniversary of his government at the Karnataka assembly.

Yedyurappa, made the announcement teary-eyed. "I am resigning from this post. I am meeting the Governor Thavarchand Gehlot after lunch and submitting my resignation.

"I thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for allowing me to continue even after 75 years of age. I will be involved in party building activities in future," he said.

"When (Atal Bihari Vajpayee) was Prime Minister he asked me to be a minister at the Centre. But I said I will be in Karnataka," Yediyurappa said in a very emotional address.

The 78-year-old Lingayat strongman, the face of the BJP in the state in the past two decades, had given an indication of the resignation earlier on Sunday. He asserted that he will continue to work for the BJP for the next 10-15 years.

Stating that he had offered to resign two months ago if the party so wished, he reiterated that he would continue in the post if the high command so desired and quit if they asked him to.

Earlier, speaking to reporters at the district headquarters town Belagavi, he reiterated that he would abide by the decision of the party's central leadership, and said he was content and satisfied and "will not cross the disciplinary line."

"I got most of the positions in the party, which no one else might have got in Karnataka, for which I express my gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and party president J P Nadda", the Chief Minister said.

Yediyurappa said he has the "lone target" of toiling for the next two years and bringing the BJP back to power in Karnataka, where assembly elections are due in 2023.

He agreed with BJP national general secretary C T Ravi's statement that everyone in the BJP is an ordinary party worker and he would abide by the party's instruction.

"He is 100 per cent right. We will not exceed the disciplinary line. We have been following it and will do so in future as well", the Chief Minister said.

In Panaji, BJP National President J P Nadda on Sunday praised Yediyurappa for his "good work".

"It is good, he has done a good job. Karnataka (government) is running smoothly.

Yediyurappa is looking (managing) at things on his part," Nadda said in response to a question on Yediyurappa government completing two years in office and how he views his leadership. To a question that there seemed to be a political crisis in Karnataka, he said “That is what you feel. We don't feel so."

(With PTI inputs.)