With Janata Dal-Secular rebels showing no signs of change in their stand, senior JD-S leader and State Finance Minister P G R Sindhia Monday expressed optimism that "possibilities of rebels having a rethink on their stand are not ruled out".
"Some kind of rethinking is on among rebel legislators. Some of them spoke to me. The situation will certainly alter," he told PTI in Bangalore.
Sindhia, who remained firm on not associating with rebels and announced his loyalty to Deve Gowda, however, could not explain on what basis he was being so optimistic. "Wait and see," he said. "Attempts are on to persuade Kumaraswamy to return to the party's line of thinking. Under no circumstances will JD-S go with the Bharatiya Janata Party," Sindhia declared as Kumaraswamy remained firm on installing a new government with BJP support.
Training his guns on BJP, which, he charged, as "power hungry," he said, "By creating this mess BJP has lost its moral stand and will be wiped out in the state in the next elections."
Accusing the BJP of indulging in "opportunistic" politics to gain power, he said, "According to me, here and there BJP may gain, but ultimately it will be destroyed in Karnataka."
Sindhia squarely blamed the Congress leadership for the present crisis and a section of leaders who succeeded in creating a wedge between Congress and JD-S by supporting the former deputy chief minister Siddaramaiah.
"What would have happened if Congress shared power with JD-S in panchayats?" he asked Congress and said Sonia Gandhi was kept in the dark on all these developments.
Meanwhile, stating that Congress' gameplan to save the government through the intervention of Sonia would not succeed, senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa Monday expressed optimism that the new 'JD-S-BJP government' would assume office on January 28.
"Moves by Congress president Sonia to save the Congress-led coalition government will be frustrated as the JD-S and BJP are firm on forming a new government," Yediyurappa told PTI in Bangalore.
"Sonia has no iota of hope in saving the government," he said.
He alleged that Congress was trying to create confusion in the minds of people "to win the heart" of JD-S and was indulging in horsetrading.
"We (BJP and JD-S) have loved each other and decided to marry. We hope elders of the family (Deve Gowda) will come and bless us on the wedding day," Yediyurappa, whom the party has projected as a deputy chief minister in the new dispensation, said.
He demanded that Chief Minister N Dharam Singh quit without bringing embarassment to Governor T N Chaturvedi, 'as he is heading a minority government'.
Complimenting Kumaraswamy for its decision to withdraw support to Congress-led government and join hands with BJP, Yediyurappa asserted that the "the new government will come to office certainly".
He said Gowda has even declared that his son has not committed any mistake and blamed the Congress for the present turmoil. "What does this indicate?" he asked.
Yediyurappa, defended his party's tie-up with JD-S stating that the two parties plan to form the government was on the cards as early as 2004 after Congress was routed in the assembly.
However, due to certain compulsions the JD-S chose to align with the Congress, he said.
Yediyurappa said the people rejected the Congress in the last elections and came to power, courtesy Deve Gowda.
The JD-S-BJP alliance would give a new turn to politics at the national level, he said. "We are preparing to oust the Congress from the south" Yediyurappa said.