Bengaluru, May 19: After BS Yeddyurappa stepped down as the Karnataka Chief Minister ahead of the floor test, Governor Vajubhai Vala invited HD Kumaraswamy to form the government in the state. Kumaraswamy is the chief ministerial candidate of Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) alliance. The oath-taking ceremony will take place on Monday between 12 – 1 pm.

Talking to the media after coming out of the Raj Bhavan, Kumaraswamy said that he had invited Congress President Rahul Gandhi and Sonia for his swearing-in ceremony. The JD(S) chief also said that West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu, Telangana CM KC Rao had congratulated him. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) also wished him for his swearing-in. Kumaraswamy also confirmed that he had invited all the regional party leaders for the oath-taking ceremony.

Earlier in the day, Bharatiya Janata Party’s BS Yeddyurappa resigned from the post of chief minister ahead of the floor test. The BJP emerged as the largest party with 104 seats in the Karnataka assembly elections but fell short of eight seats to gain a majority on the assembly. On the other side, Congress with 78 seats and JD(S) with 37 seats formed a coalition to oppose the BJP from coming to power. Out of the three seats won by ‘Others’, the two has extended support to the coalition.

In the wee hours of Thursday the Supreme Court while hearing a plea filed by the Congress-JD(S) alliance refused to stay put stay on the swearing-in of Yeddyurappa, however, on Friday the top court to prevent horse-trading, directed the governor to conduct the floor test on Saturday. Two Congress lawmakers, however, defected from the party.

The Karnataka assembly elections were conducted on May 12. The result was announced on May 15 on 222 seats out of 224. The state got fractured mandate which created political turmoil in the state.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 19, 2018 08:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).