Karnataka Assembly Speaker K R Ramesh Kumar on Thursday disqualified three rebel Congress MLAs under the anti-defection law. With all attention riveted on the Speaker’s action, Kumar held that the resignation by the three MLAs were “not voluntary and genuiune” and therefore proceeded to disqualify them under the anti-defection law with immediate effect till the end of the term of the current House in 2023. The Speaker said he would decide on both resignations and disqualification pleas pending before him in respect of 14 other MLAs “in the next couple of days”. The 14-month-old Congress-JDS coalition government headed by H D Kumaraswamy collapsed on Tuesday after losing the vote of confidence in the assembly.
