The BJP would have thrown away the Kumaraswamy government and formed its own regime in Karnataka by now but only one man could effectively prevent it in the past two weeks. That is Assembly Speaker K Ramappa Ramesh Kumar. He is known as a centre of controversies in Karnataka politics. A six-time senior Congress MLA, Ramesh is now seen as a saviour of the JDS-Congress alliance with his bold stand and fearless defence in the face of challenges from the Supreme Court as well as Karnataka Governor. He is not accepting the resignations of the rebel MLAs despite enormous pressure from all sides.

The latest challenge is from the Governor who wanted the confidence vote to be completed immediately. But the Speaker unhesitatingly replied that he would follow the rules of the Assembly only saying that the House is independent of outside influences. Ramesh Kumar has been postponing the floor test several times now to save Kumaraswamy regime. Meanwhile, the ruling alliance is trying hard but failing to mobilize numbers to save its government. The rival BJP is unyielding and sticking to its guns. The Speaker says that he will not hold the confidence vote till there’s a sense of harmony and stability in the Assembly. He has become a hard nut to crack for the mighty BJP.