Dhananjay Kumar expelled from BJP; Yeddyurappa to follow?

BANGALORE: The BJP has sent a strong message to former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa that it is ready to action him by expelling his close and former Union minister V Dhananjay Kumar on charges of anti-party activities.

Giving a double blow to Yeddyurappa, who has announced to quit the party very soon, the BJP high command has also asked its state unit not to worry about exit of former chief minister, besides expelling Kumar.
The action on Kumar, who was a cabinet minister in Vajpayee government, comes a day after state BJP president K S Eshwarappa met party's national president Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi. Gadkari is said to have asked Eshwarappa and party not to break heads over Yeddyurappa's imminent exit.

"He (Kumar) has been expelled on anti-party activities," Raghunath Rao Malkapure, chairman, disciplinary committee of state BJP, told TOI. The former Union minister was served show-cause notice last week following his outburst on party leaders. Last month, he was stripped from state representative to Delhi post after reports of being "ineffective and non-performer".

While he was asked to reply within seven days, Kumar on Tuesday blasted Eshwarappa, chief minister Jagadish Shettar, former CM D V Sadananda Gowda, party's national general secretary H N Ananth Kumar and senior leader Santhosh. "Instead of controlling mob near Mandya that had blocked Bangalore-Mysore highway, Shettar had put additional security to his residence," Kumar said.

Continuing to attack, he alleged that Ananth Kumar has role in multi-crore housing scam, Eshwarappa is brimming with inflated ego and Santhosh is involved in making money while appointing heads to board and corporations and official postings. However, Malkapure denied the allegations.

Even as Kumar's expulsion order was made public, Yeddyurappa dared the party to take similar action against him. When asked to react on Gowda statement, who on Monday said BJP will not lose anything if Yeddyurappa quits the party, the former CM sarcastically said let Goddess Chamundi punish the evil and protect the good people.

Meanwhile Gadkari has asked Eshwarappa to continue as state BJP president till assembly elections are completed next year. Eshwarappa had offered to resign as deputy chief minister's most as he had expressed his inability to head the party and manage revenue and rural development portfolios. However, Gadkari is said to have rejected it and asked him to continue in all the posts.

The party has decided to face elections under collective leadership involving Shettar (Lingayat), Eshwarappa (Kuruba), Kumar (Brahmin), R Ashoka (Vokkaliga) and Govind M Karjol (Dalit).