'PM's Latest Victim': Congress as BS Yediyurappa Resigns as Karnataka CM

On Monday, BS Yediyurappa thanked the leadership and submitted his resignation to Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot.

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Monday, 26 July, resigned from his post following an emotional speech.

(Photo: PTI/Altered by The Quint)

As Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Monday, 26 July, resigned from his post, Congress leader and AICC General Secretary incharge of Karnataka Randeep Singh Surjewala called him another of "Modiji’s victims in BJP".

Surjewala added that the "ignominy, torment and insult being heaped upon Sh. B.S.Yediyurappa by Modi ji, dictating him to tender his resignation, makes him PM’s latest victim and member of the ‘forced retirement club’."

Yediyurappa's resignation on Monday came after an emotional speech at an event organised to mark two years of his government coming to power in the state.

Yediyurappa thanked the leadership and submitted his resignation to Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot. He will remain caretaker chief minister of the state for the next two weeks.

The Congress' Twitter handle also posted about Yediyurappa's resignation, saying it to was "testament to the flagrant corruption carried out by BJP in the state".

Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Siddaramaiah also reacted to the news and said that the future of Karnataka is bleak because of BJP's presence in the state and said he feels sympathy for Yediyurappa.

The former CM of the state tweeted:

He added that a definite reason has to be given to the people when a chief minister of the majority party resigns. "What is the reason for Yediyurappa's resignation? Old age or corruption?" He asked on Twitter.

"BJP should quit because they can't work for welfare of the state," ANI quoted the leader as saying.

Congress leader DK Shivakumar asked why the resignation was painful for Yediyurappa.

"Why was it painful? Pain because of whom? CM should express himself and inform the public so that they get clarity. Is it because people have suffered for two years due to COVID? Is it because of the government that you are sad," he asked.

Shivakumar added that Yediyurappa should inform the public why he was emotional while announcing his resignation.

Meanwhile, BJP leader and Karnataka Minister K Sudhakar said that Yediyurappa's resignation was a surprise for him.

"He told me that he may receive a favourable decision from the high command by 26 July. But we all have to abide by the norms of the party. He is only quitting CM post, not active politics," Sudhakar told reporters, according to news agency ANI.

'Not Pressurised to Resign'

Speaking to the media, Yediyurappa said that he was not pressured to resign.

Refuting rumours of him being offered governorship, Yediyurappa said that he won't leave Karnataka and will keep working under the new chief minister to bring the party back to power in the 2023 elections.

Yediyurappa had reportedly been facing resistance from within the state unit since the beginning of his term, specifically over prioritising the MLAs who had left the Congress and the JD(S) to cause the downfall of the HD Kumaraswamy government in 2019.

(With inputs from ANI.)