New Delhi, May 30 (Agencies): Amid speculations about the fate of the Congress-JD(S) coaltion government in Karnataka, chief minister H D Kumaraswamy on Thursday May 30 met Congress president Rahul Gandhi and
informed him that the state government was functioning smoothly and assured him that there was coordination between ruling coalition partners.
Kumaraswamy's meeting with the Congress president comes in the wake of growing dissent in the ruling coalition.
All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge of Karnataka K C Venugopal is in Bengaluru currently to placate the disgruntled state leaders.
"The CM apprised Rahul Gandhi of the current political situation in the state and said the coalition government in the state is functioning smoothly with cooperation and coordination between both the parties," an official statement said.
During the brief meeting, Kumaraswamy also urged Gandhi not to quit as the Congress chief, saying "the nation needs his service", the statement added.
Kumaraswamy met Rahul Gandhi at his residence here for over 20 minutes.
The Karnataka CM later told reporters, "I have requested Rahul Gandhi not to step down from his post."
Kumaraswamy also discussed the outcome of the just-concluded Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka with Gandhi.
The coalition government in the southern state has been fragile since its inception with reports of its collapse surfacing every now and then.
Following the drubbing of the Congress-JD(S) combine in the Lok Sabha election, where the two parties managed to win only one seat each in Karnataka, a senior Congress leader had claimed that the state government would collapse after June 10.
Two Congress MLAs – Ramesh Jarkiholi and Sudhakar -- met BJP leaders at Krishna's residence, though they later claimed that their visit was not political.
The BJP, with 105 legislators, is the single-largest party in the 225-member Karnataka Assembly, while the ruling coalition has 117 MLAs – 79 of the Congress, 37 of the JD(S) and one of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) – in the House.