Sacked BSP MLA says abstained from Karnataka floor test as per party’s instructions, denies violating Mayawati diktat

The Bahujan Samaj Party MLA from Karnataka who was expelled yesterday for abstaining during the trust motion and not voting for the Congress-JDS government has defended his absence saying he was asked to be neutral and not support any party. Maintaining that he did not violate any order from BSP supremo Mayawati, Mahesh said he was only following orders and was absent as per instructions.

“Party incharge Ashok Siddharth told me to abstain from voting, be neutral and not support any party. That was the instruction given to me. Accordingly, I was absent. I haven’t violated Behen ji’s (Mayawati) order”, he told ANI.

The Kollegal MLA further said that the decision of the party surprised him and that he was away in Bengaluru for more than a week. “According to directions of high command, I was absent, staying neutral. It’s a surprise for me as I have not violated any order. I haven’t spoken to the party supremo, I was away from Bengaluru for nearly a week. Today morning I came to know I have been expelled,” he added.

Maintaining that it was a clear case of miscommunication, the BSP MLA expressed confidence that the decision to expel him from the party was a temporary thing, and everything will be alright.

Minutes after the fall of HD Kumaraswamy government fall in Karnataka, Mayawati sacked Mahesh for not supporting the ruling alliance during the trust vote. As per reports, Mayawati had earlier directed him to vote for the Kumaraswamy government. In a tweet, Mayawati said Mahesh defied the party direction. “The party has taken it seriously. And for this reason, the party has sacked Mahesh with immediate effect,” she tweeted.

The Kumaraswamy government lost the confidence motion with just 99 MLAs on its side. The Congress-JDS coalition government was in a minority after 16 MLAs (13 from Congress and 3 from JDS) resigned and shifted base to a Mumbai hotel. Before their resignations, the coalition had 117 MLAs — Congress 78, JD(S) 37, BSP 1, and nominated 1, apart from the Speaker. The BJP with 105 MLAs won majority after the reduced strength of the House.