Bangalore, Jun 19 (DHNS) : B S Yeddyurappa may be facing a plethora of problems due to CBI inquiry, but that has not deterred the former chief minister and his followers from renewing their demand for replacing Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda with a Lingayat leader.

On Monday evening, they met at his residence to collect signatures of MLAs to present a memorandum to the party central leadership to convene a BJP legislature party meeting at the earliest.

Party sources said Yeddyurappa himself called BJP National President Nitin Gadkari to convey his supporters’ request for convening the Legislature party meeting where many issues including leadership change could be discussed.

It is learnt that the Yeddyurappa camp is in favour of minister Jagadish Shettar as an ‘ideal’ alternative to Gowda.

The legislators, who are nearly 60 in number, are of the view that the party would be better placed to face the next Assembly elections under a Lingayat leader.
The chief minister, who was scheduled to visit Bijapur on Tuesday, cancelled his tour following the developments at Yeddyurappa’s house.

Speaking to reporters, minister C M Udasi said they have urged the chief minister and State party president K S Eshwarappa to convene the BJPLP within the next three days. The group is planning to meet again on Tuesday to chalk out the next course of action.

Even as the ‘Oust Gowda’ campaign was on at Yeddyurappa’s residence on Monday evening, in another part of the City, Eshwarappa and the chief minister spoke of the party coming out of all its troubles.

At a function organised by the BJP City unit to felicitate the newly elected members of the Legislative Council, Eshwarappa and Gowda spoke about unity have been restored in the party. “There may have been some confusion in the party, but we have overcome all that. The unanimous choice of party candidates for the Council polls and their subsequent victory is testimony to the fact that all is well in the party,” Eshwarappa said.

They gave no indication that they were aware of the developments at Yeddyurappa’s residence.

Both Eshwarappa and Gowda were seen discussing animatedly through the function. Minister Shobha Karandlaje, who is identified with the anti-Gowda camp, sat a few seats away but did not speak to either Gowda or Eshwarappa.

Gowda refused to answer queries from reporters on whether he would convene a BJPLP soon.

On their part, Gowda and Eshwarappa are said to be in favour of facing early elections in December instead of May next year, when the tenure of the present Assembly ends.