The Presidential election came as an embarrassment for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka. Bitter rivalries and divisions within the state unit came to the fore in the Presidential election as 14 MLAs are said to have gone against the party by voting for Pranab Mukherjee.
Sources say they came from 3 different factions, including the anti-Yeddyurappa and anti-Gowda groups.
Sources say one of the groups was the Bellary Reddy faction. These MLAs swear their allegiance to Sriramulu who was the Health Minister and floated his own party. Though they haven't left the party, they are closer to Sriramulu.
The second group could have included those left out from the Jagadish Shettar Cabinet. Some MLAs were unhappy about not getting Cabinet ranks. These include the MLAs close to the BS Yeddyurappa group. They seemed to have expressed displeasure by voting against the party command.
The third group may have been the anti-Yeddyurappa group that includes MLAs who were unhappy that Gowda was removed. Therefore, due to displeasure, they voted for Pranab.
The BJP national leadership will send a team to Bangalore to probe the matter and Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar is likely to convene a meeting too.
In Karnataka, while Pranab got 117 votes, PA Sangma got 103. Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday won the Presidential election and is set to be sworn in as the 13th President of India on Wednesday.
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