An audio clip of Karnataka Law Minister JC Madhuswamy was leaked to the media on Tuesday, 16 August, causing fresh embarrassment to the Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai-led government.
In the audio clip, Madhuswamy can purportedly be heard saying, "We are not running the government, we are just managing it," NDTV reported.
This comes amid speculation that Bommai will be replaced as the state's chief minister by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) due to "dissatisfaction" with his government's performance.
Bommai, however, went into damage control mode and said that Madhuswamy's comments had been taken out of context.
"Everything is good, there's no trouble. I will speak to all concerned, and settle the issue," he said, adding that the minister's comments were made in the context of the bank demanding interest.
'Madhuswamy Should Resign if That's How He Feels': Karnataka Minister
On the other hand, Munirathna, a minister in the state government, said that if that is how Madhuswamy feels (that the Cabinet was managing but not running the government), he should immediately resign. He also asserted that it was "irresponsible" of the minister to make those remarks.
"If he thinks that we are managing, he should step down immediately as the law minister of Karnataka. He is a part of the government. He is a part of every Cabinet meeting and the decision that's made. If he has made that statement, that means he is also party to it. Being in a ministerial position, it is irresponsible of him to make such a statement," he said.
Speaking on speculations that Bommai will be replaced as the state's CM, former Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa, who had chosen Bommai as his replacement when he stepped down last year, said that the BJP would seek another term under the current CM's leadership.
Yediyurappa also claimed that Home Minister Amit Shah had said that Bommai's position in the top post was secure.
(With inputs from NDTV.)
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