The move was considered as a pressure tactic by the BJP to quell dissidence to save its totterring government.

Assembly Secretary S B Patil served notice on 11 dissident MLAs,including minister for excise M P Renukacharya.

Patil said the MLAs on whom the notice has been issued have to meet the Speaker before October 10 by 5 pm and tender their explanation,a day before Yeddyurappa would seek a confidence vote as instructed by Governor H R Bhardwaj.

Best of Express Premium

Premium

Premium

Premium

Premium

The rebels are currently camping in a hotel in Goa.

The action by the Speaker comes in the wake of 14 BJP MLAs submitting a letter to Governor H R Bharadwaj on October 6,informing their decision to withdraw support to the BJP government.

Those who got the notice besides Renukacharya are: Belur Gopalakrishna,Balachandra Jarkiholi,Shivanagouda Naik,H S Shankaralinge Gowda,Y Sampangi,Anand Asnotikar,Sarbhouma Bagali,G N Nanjundaswamy,Baramgouda H Kage and M V Nagaraju.

Meanwhile,senior BJP leader Manohar Parrikar on Friday held talks with dissident Karnataka legislators in Panaji and exuded confidence that the crisis facing the state government will be blown over by Saturday as “certain issues” can be solved at the party forum.

“It is a dispute within the party and it will be resolved by tomorrow,” he told reporters. Parrikar,who is heading the Good Governance Cell of the party,held series of meetings with the legislators and said that legislators have no demands but “certain issues” which can be solved at the party forum.

“I met everyone including independents and discussed their grievances,” he said.

Karnataka’s Excise Minister M P Renukacharya was amongst the legislators who held talks with Parrikar.

Parrikar,who is also Goa’s Leader of Opposition,said the possibility of the crisis getting over has become strong after his meeting.

The BJP leader alleged that former Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy,who is in Goa,was involved in horse trading.

However,he said,”I don’t think any of the BJP legislator or independents allowed them to be traded”.

Around 15 dissident legislators from Karnataka are camping in a five star hotel at Benaulim,50 kms away from Panaji.

Karnataka Tourism Minister Janardhan Reddy,who has come down to Goa to negotiate with the legislators,is yet to meet them.

“I am heading the Good Governance cell and its my responsibility that BJP governments work smoothly,” Parrikar said,adding there is no horse trading to keep the legislators together.

He also said that he does not have the authority to grant their demands but will put them across to the high command.

“They are our legislators. Why should we be involved in horse trading,” the Leader of Opposition said.

Parrikar said that he has a reputation of not dealing in money during crisis resolution.

Local congress leaders including state home minister Ravi Naik,Power Minister Aleixo Sequeira and Public works department minister Churchill Alemao were also present at the hotel on Thursday night.

“I think so. Gen V K Singh is a very honourable man. The Army rests on the basis of honour and integrity…I don’t think he will compromise on honour unless he was driven to it,” he said when asked if the Army chief was forced to go to the Supreme Court on the age issue.

Gen Singh filed a petition before the Supreme Court last week challenging government’s orders which had determined his date of birth to be May 10,1950 and not May 10,1951,which would have given him an extra ten months in office.

Asked if the Army chief was justified in approaching the court on the issue,Roychowdhury said,”Yes,of course,he can. Should he have gone to court,that is an issue which has to judged on the basis of overall events.”

Best of Express Premium

Premium

Premium

Premium

Premium

“It must be examined whether the chief was placed in a position by events in the background and how long they have been going around…Can a chief be placed in certain position by turn of events,the rulings of Defence Ministry where he has no option but to go to court,” he said speaking to Karan Thapar in Devil’s Advocate programme.

Queried if it was right for a serving Army chief to have approached the court,Roychowdhury said,”If a serving major or a colonel can go to court,I don’t see why a Chief can’t go to court… He is an army person with an army persons’ rights.”

When pointed out that armies across the world were supposed to obey orders,the former Army chief said,”There are organisations that take advantage of these principles and force things on army which it does not like.”

On whether accepting 1950 as his year of birth would vitiate Gen Singh’s case,Roychowdhury said,”I would like to say that we should go into circumstances that made him declare that 1950 was his date of birth. What were the circumstances and what were the pressures put on him,we don’t know.”

He said Gen Singh Singh would have accepted 1950 as his date of birth in writing “under pressure” and dismissed suggestions that he was putting self before service on the issue.

Roychowdhury said if anything affects the career of an officer and “particularly getting the top spot,if at that juncture some person or organisation says that unless you sign this undertaking,you will not be promoted. This would bring severe pressure on him”.

He said the government should have “handled the issue in a better manner and shown more understanding… The Defence Ministry is guilty of not putting broad approach to the issue. Minister should have exercised judgement”.

The fact that two different dates of birth existed in two different branches of the Army was “appalling” and said that it should be ensured that no such cases come up in future,the former army chief said.

“Raids were also conducted at the residences of Independent candidate Pawan Kumar Dhoot in Kolkata and former Rajya Sabha member Ajay Maroo in Ranchi,” a CBI official said.

Dhoot,an industrialist,was one of the independent candidates in the countermanded Rajya Sabha elections.

The CBI could not search the house of JMM MLA Sita Soren,daughter-in-law of JMM president Shibu Soren,in Bokaro,as it was found locked.

Best of Express Premium

Premium

Premium

Premium

Premium

“We have put a seal on her residence and deployed guards there. However,we have conducted raids in her other houses,” the official said.

Thirty-six places were selected for the early morning raid by 36 teams of the premier investigation agency in Ranchi,Jamshedpur,Bokaro,Hazaribagh,Godda,Bihar’s Banka district and Giridih.

The other MLAs in whose residences raids were conducted are Sanjay Prasad Yadav,Janardhan Paswan,Sanjay Kumar Singh Yadav (all 3 of RJD),Sudha Choudhary (JDU),Ram Chandra Sahis,Umakant Razzak,Kamal Kishore Bhagat (all 3 of AJSU Party),Paulis Surin (JMM),Arun Mandal,Ramchandra Baitha (both BJP),Saurav Narayan Singh,Anant Pratap Deo,Sarafaraz Ahmed (all three Cong),the official said.

Raids were also carried out in the premises of Yakub Ali,a private citizen,he said.

On April 21,the CBI had raided the premises of three MLAs,Vishnu Bhaiyya (JMM),K N Tripathy (Congress) and Suresh Paswan of the RJD and independent candidate and industrialist R K Agarwal and his kin.

The sleuths had also seized the ballot box,which was allegedly used in the March 30 countermanded elections to the Rajya Sabha,on April 21.

The agency has registered a case under section 171F (undue influence) and 188 of the Indian Penal Code (disobedience to an order lawfully promulgated by a public servant),days after the police and the Income Tax department seized Rs 2.15 crore from a vehicle allegedly belonging to a relative of an independent candidate on the outskirts of Ranchi on the day of the poll.

The EC had conducted fresh biennial elections on May 3 for the two RS seats.