Is Gowda scuttling Reddy's empire plans?

Bellary moneybags scheme to topple Yeddyurappa and form a government with the Congress, but Deve Gowda busts it by sending son to speak to Sonia

Former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy's late night meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi could be his dad Deve Gowda's masterstroke to scuttle the Bellary Reddys' plans to rule the state.

BJP insiders say that with their mining business facing closure, the Reddys were hoping to topple chief minister B S Yeddyurappa with Congress help.

The Centre had recently suspended mining on the Karnataka-Andhra Pradesh border and had ordered a survey after allegations against the Reddys and their firm Obalapuram Mining Company of encroaching forest land. This was a deathblow to their core business.

"Apparently, Yeddyurappa did not support them and the miffed Reddys are trying to split the BJP to form their own government," a source told MiD DAY.

The Reddy brothers want at least 54 BJP MLAs to break away and are talking to them. They are also trying to strike a deal with the Congress through Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajashekara Reddy, who is close to them as well as Sonia Gandhi.

The deal
According to the deal, Karunakara Reddy, Janardhana Reddy's younger brother, will become deputy chief minister in the Congress-splinter BJP coalition government.

"It seems an uphill task for the Reddys to muster the numbers, but they are at it," said the source.
Getting wind of the plot, Gowda beat his archrivals to it by sending his son to Delhi to meet Sonia. Kumaraswamy is understood to have assured Sonia of the Third Front's support at the Centre after the poll results.

Reddy scheme
>>Break away from BJP
>>Cosy up to Congress
>>Topple Yeddyurappa
>>Form coalition government

Gowda counter-scheme
>>Praise Rahul, soften up Sonia
>>Promise support for UPA
>>Scuttle Reddy overtures
>>Reignite affair with Congress