New Delhi, July 9: Congress veteran Ghulam Nabi Azad, who has been deployed by the party for the rescue mission in Karnataka, jabbed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by accusing the saffron camp of choosing its next Chief Ministers in "bars and restaurants". The remark was issued by Azad while charging the BJP with "horse-trading".

Azad claimed that the defection of 13 Congress and JD(S) MLAs have been "engineered" by the BJP, further questioning that who was responsible for booking a private jet for rebel independent legislator H Nagesh for flying him from Bengaluru to Mumbai. BJP Lawmaker KS Eshwarappa Claims Kumaraswamy Govt Would Collapse by Friday

"There is a BJP hand in the Karnataka crisis. Yeddyurappa’s PA was in the plane with rebel MLAs. BJP appoints Chief Ministers in bars and restaurants. They have done this before in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh," Azad said.

Notably, 10 among the rebel legislators are currently in Mumbai where they are lodged at a hotel. They attempted to shift to Goa last night but turned down their plan.

Senior Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar said he would be reaching Mumbai on Wednesday in a bid to pacify the rebels. The party's "troubleshooter" is hopeful of winning back the support of most of the dissidents.

In a major breather for the party, Speaker on Tuesday said that the resignation of 8 among the rebel MLAs have not been accepted as they did not adhere to the prescribed format.

A clear picture on the political crisis is expected to emerge on July 12, when the Karnataka assembly would be reconvening. A floor test is likely on cards.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 09, 2019 08:06 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).