Karnataka govt formation: Congress chief Kharge to invite opposition leaders for swearing-in ceremony

New Delhi [India], May 18 (ANI): Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge is expected to invite opposition leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka chief minister and deputy chief minister, according to sources.

They said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Rai Bareli MP Sonia Gandhi, party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other senior party leaders will attend the event
The oath-taking ceremony will be held in Bengaluru on May 20.

In 2018, when Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Kumaraswamy was sworn in as the chief minister of Karnataka coalition government, a galaxy of Opposition leaders attended the ceremony.

The ceremony was attended by Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress, then Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu of the Telugu Desam Party, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal of the Aam Aadmi Party, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and other top leaders like the Nationalist Congress Party’s Sharad Pawar, Sharad Yadav from the Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Janata Dal’s Tejashwi Yadav and Left’s Sitaram Yechury and D Raja.

In 2013 Siddaramaiah had taken oath at the same venue, the Sree Kanteerava Stadium here when he became the chief minster of the State for the first time.

The Congress is all set to name Siddaramaiah as the next chief minister of Karnataka, and a formal announcement on the same will be is made at a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting this evening here in Bengaluru. According to sources while Siddharamaiah will get the CM position, the Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar will be the Deputy Chief Minister.

The Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief Shivakumar has written to all the legislators, asking them to attend the meeting of newly-elected MLAs, MLCs and MPs at the Indira Gandhi Bhavan on Queen’s Road today in Bengaluru at 7 pm today.

According to sources, Congress President Kharge worked till late night Wednesday to break the political deadlock over the next chief minister and arrived at a consensus for government formation.

Central Observers from the All India Congress Committee (AICC) have been asked to reach Bengaluru to conduct the CLP Meeting.

Shivakumar who arrived at the residence of general secretary KC Venugopal in the national capital last evening told reporters that, the party high command had taken the call on the chief minister.

Meanwhile, security was stepped up and banners were also put up outside Congress leader Siddaramaiah’s residence.

Congress bagged 135 seats in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly ousting the ruling BJP, which got 66 seats while the Janata Dal (Secular) secured 19 seats.