BENGALURU: Karnataka Congress leaders on Friday strongly criticised the Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot’s walkout from the Assembly on Thursday without reading the complete address drafted by the state government, with Congress MLC M Nagaraju Yadav calling for his removal from the post.
Yadav reacted strongly to the recent controversy, targeting the central government, “The BJP should not turn out this matter like this.”, implying that the governor was instructed by them. He claimed that a senior Congress leader appealed to the Governor to fulfil his duties at the Assembly.
“Hariprasad, a senior leader of the Congress party, was trying to request the Governor, saying that there is a purpose to your coming to the joint session, you have to do your duties properly, and that you were supposed to address the joint session”, he said.
#WATCH | Bengaluru: : On Karnataka governor Thawar Chand Gehlot, Congress MLC M Nagaraju Yadav says, “The BJP should not turn out this matter like this… Hariprasad, a senior leader of the Congress party, was trying to request the Governor, saying that there is a purpose to your… pic.twitter.com/qW5SDsPYFG
— ANI (@ANI) January 23, 2026
Calling for strict action against Gehlot, he said, “Action should be taken to remove the governor immediately. Karnataka does not need a governor who does not respect the Constitution of India”.
Congress MLA Pradeep Eshwar highlighted that this threat to the Governor’s position is unprecedented, saying, For the first time in the history of Indian politics, the governor’s position is at stake”. Citing Article 163 of the Constitution, he stated that it “clearly states that the Council of Ministers should aid and advise the Governor.” Alleging that the Governor is acting independently, he added that “We strongly condemn the Governor’s steps.”
Along with this, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy claimed that governors from opposition-led states are being advised by the central government. Highlighting the standard procedure followed by the Assembly every year, he called the walkout “unfair”.
“Every year, the governor will come and address the joint session. Whichever government or state prepares the speech, he must read it… This is very unfair… In Tamil Nadu, Kerala and West Bengal, where the opposition parties are ruling, the governors are taking advice from the central government.”, he said.
Earlier, Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot walked out of the Assembly without reading the full address drafted by the state government. The Governor reportedly read only the first and last lines of his customary address to the joint session before leaving the House.
Following the incident, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah alleged that the Governor violated the Constitution by not reading the Cabinet-approved address at the year’s first joint session. He declared that a decision on approaching the Supreme Court will be taken after due discussion. (ANI)
