According to sources, the new Karnataka Chief Minister and the cabinet will take oath on Thursday.
DK Shivkumar or Siddaramaiah? The suspense over who’ll become the next chief minister of Karnataka continued even as the newly elected MLAs of the party gathered in Bengaluru for the CLP meet. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said today that the AICC observers will convey the opinion of the party’s MLAs to the high command which will then take a decision on the chief ministerial pick.
The final contours of the Karnataka cabinet will take shape in a day or two, people with direct knowledge of the matter said.
The Congress called a meeting of its MLAs today at Shangri-la Hotel to discuss who would be the Chief Minister.
The Congress’ surge, from 69 seats in the outgoing Assembly to winning 136 seats and a 43% vote share, was on the back of a strong anti-incumbency wave against the ruling BJP in the face of a last-ditch, high-decibel push led by PM Modi and the BJP leadership. The ruling party, which held 118 seats in the Assembly, was reduced to 65, and the Janata Dal (Secular) party’s tally fell from 32 seats to 19. BJP leader and former chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, who resigned last night after BJP lost the state elections, stated that this wasn’t Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s defeat.