Karnataka Guv Gehlot refuses to address joint session

Bengaluru: Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has refused to address the joint sitting of the state legislature on January 22, with the government deciding to reach out to him following his decision.

The grounds for the Governor's refusal are not clear. However, alleged references to the Centre in the address is said to be the reason, according to sources. The development comes a day after controversies erupted over Govenor’s addresses to the Assemblies in neighbouring Kerala and Tamil Nadu, both non-BJP ruled states like Karnataka.

This is the third incident of a governor refusing to address a state assembly in the past two days. On Tuesday, Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi walked out of the state Assembly without delivering his customary address to the House on the opening day of its inaugural session of the year, claiming "inaccuracies" in the text.

Similarly, Kerala Governor Rajendra Viswanath Arlekar had allegedly "omitted" portions of his speech, with the Lok Bhavan claiming his suggestions had been excluded from the original draft.