Unfurling the red carpet of Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru, HD Kumaraswamy becomes the 24th Chief Minister of Karnataka

NewsBharati    24-May-2018
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Bengaluru, May 23: After days of high drama and intense power-sharing formula to form the government, the Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru laid the red carpet for its 24th Chief Minister. Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Kumaraswamy took oath as the Chief Minister of Karnataka, while Congress state president G Parameshwara was sworn in as his deputy.

HD Kumaraswamy was administered the oath of office and secrecy by governor Vajubhai Vala in front of the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru, as a host of national and regional leaders looked on. The ceremony was attended by a host of opposition leaders and chief ministers, a development that could plant a seed for a broad-based anti-BJP front before the Lok Sabha election next year.

 

Karnataka Congress president G Parameshwara was also sworn-in as the deputy chief minister and Ramesh Kumar, a former minister, and Congress leader will be the next assembly speaker. The Congress will have 22 ministers and the JD(S) 12, AICC general secretary in-charge of the state KC Venugopal said, adding that they would be sworn-in after the floor test slated for Friday.

Congratulating Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted saying, “I congratulate Shri @hd_kumaraswamy Ji and @DrParameshwara Ji on taking oath as Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka. My best wishes for their tenure ahead.”

 

Reiterating to the tweet, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy tweeted saying, “My heartfelt thanks to you PM @narendramodi ji for the wishes. I have full faith in our federal system and I am there with you on all development-oriented issues. I also seek your full cooperation in developing Karnataka into a model state.”

 
 
The ceremony will be attended by leaders including Congress President Rahul Gandhi, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, and Chief Ministers of non-BJP states and heads of regional parties. BSP supremo Mayawati and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, who had formed an alliance with by-polls in Uttar Pradesh, were seen sitting next to each other. CPI(M) powerhouse Sitaram Yechury, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav and NCP leader Sharad Pawar were among the high-powered guests who shared a dais during the oath-taking ceremony. 

Ahead of taking the oath, Kumaraswamy said there would be certain limitations in a coalition government and he would have to take his coalition partner, the Congress, into confidence over a number of matters. The JD(S) leader said the new government will waive farmer loans after improving the state's financial outlook.

 

"They (Congress) have their own programmes in their manifesto. We have to compile the manifesto of two parties and after improving the economy of the state, we will waive farm loans. There is no question of my backtracking," he added. In the recently held state assembly elections, Kumaraswamy won from both the Channapatna and Ramanagara assembly constituencies.
The election result for 222 out of 224 assembly constituencies resulted in a fractured mandate, with the BJP emerging as the single largest party (104 seats) only nine seats short of a simple majority mark of 112. The Congress with 78 seats and JD(S) with 37 seats and two Independent candidates formed a post-poll alliance with a total of 117 MLAs.
What followed was a high-voltage political drama in the state, as Governor Vajubhai Vala invited BJP's B S Yeddyurappa to form a government on May 16, and gave him 15 days to prove majority, amid huge uproar by the opposition.
On May 18, the Supreme Court, on the plea of the Congress and JD(S), shifted the floor test to May 19. Unable to garner the required number by the deadline, Yeddyurappa stepped down from the post of the chief minister before the floor test could be conducted, mere two days after he was sworn in.

 

PM Narendra Modi HD Kumaraswamy Chief Minister Karnataka Karnataka Assembly Elections Congress JD (S) Bharatiya Janata Party