Karnataka is headed for change as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has given marching orders to the Chief Minister, Mr B.S. Yeddyurappa. The party has taken serious view of the Karnataka Lokayukta's mining report which indicts Mr Yeddyurappa and his cabinet ministers.

The move paves the way for the BJP to take on ruling UPA at the Centre to fight against corruption issue as it prepares for the monsoon session of Parliament.

Mr Yeddyurappa, despite the party diktat, has told the BJP high command that he would resign on July 31 and has sent three requests – state party chief post for himself, CM of his choice and Cabinet berth for his loyalists. But the BJP central leadership has sent emissaries to get the resignation of the Chief Minister immediately and then only the requests of Mr Yeddyurappa would be considered in order to play moral high ground on corruption issue and to take on the UPA government.

“The BJP Parliamentary Board unanimously decided there has to be a change in the leadership of the BJP Legislature Party in Karnataka. Accordingly, it has advised Mr Yeddyurappa, to tender his resignation immediately,” the BJP spokesperson, Mr Ravishankar Prasad, told reporters after a meeting of the board at the residence of Mr Nitin Gadkari.

The Parliamentary board meeting was attended among others by Mr. L.K. Advani, Ms. Sushma Swaraj, Mr. Arun Jaitley, Mr. Rajnath Singh and Mr. Venkaiah Naidu. The board also decided to send Mr Rajnath Singh and Mr Arun Jaitley as observers to Bangalore on Friday to oversee the election of a successor to Mr. Yeddyurappa.

Mr. Yeddyurappa, who continued to be defiant and ruled out his resignation, cut short his visit to Delhi and came back within a few hours to Bangalore this morning. In Bangalore, he has been holding a series of meeting with his loyal party workers, ministers and legislators.

Only a dozen MLAs and ministers, including Mr C.M. Udasi, Mr. Murugesh Nirani, Mr Umesh Katti and Mr Basavaraj Bommai are supporting Mr Yeddyurappa.

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