“I have become a child of circumstance Says Chief Minister Kumaraswamy HDK
BANGALURU : UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and BSP supremo Mayawati walked hand-in-hand even as the two leaders hugged each other during the swearing-in ceremony of HD Kumaraswamy as Karnataka chief minister.
The opposition’s bonhomie was on display as Congress president Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, CPIM general secretary Sitaram Yechuri, NCP leader Sharad Pawar were seen together on a stage, during the event which is being projected as a show of strength by non-BJP parties.
Former JDU leader Sharad Yadav, Andhra chief minister Chandrababu Naidu, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, RLD chief Ajit Singh, Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan were also present in the ceremony.
What grabbed attention was the way Sonia Gandhi and Mayawati met on stage. For a moment, the UPA chairperson had rested her head on Mayawati’s head while other leaders were looking at both of them.
And also when Akhilesh Yadav sat next to the BSP supremo after the two waved at the gathering during the event. Both arch-rivals have recently struck an alliance in Uttar Pradesh which resulted in heavy loss to the BJP in Lok Sabha bypolls on two important seats.
H D Kumaraswamy sworn in as the Karnataka chief minister at the head of a JDS-Congress coalition government. He was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Vajubhai Vala at a grand ceremony in the Vidhana Soudha complex. State Congress chief and prominent Dalit leader G Parameshwara took oath as the deputy chief minister.
Mr. Kumaraswamy, 58, was sworn in as the Chief Minister for the second time. He was the Chief Minister for 20 months in the JD(S)-BJP coalition government during 2006-07.
The show of strength by a galaxy of national leaders and regional satraps is being seen as a strong signal to the BJP about the possibility of formation of a broad-based front to take on the BJP-led NDA in the Lok Sabha polls next year.
The BJP boycotted the ceremony and observed a “Black Day” during which it held statewide protests against the new coalition government, which it called “unholy”.
Addressing a press conference after being sworn in as Chief Minister, Mr. Kumaraswamy said he would take a floor test on May 25th. “I have become a child of circumstances. Many have expressed doubts about the stability of this government. But I will reply to them with my behaviour in future. I will take a floor test on May 25,” he said.
“The BJP has accused me of immorality. But if we introspect, I don’t know who can claim to be moral and whose moves will be immoral,” he said. “I have myself played a role in bringing down a Congress-JD(S) government in 2006. But that is an old story. This will be a stable government.
I assure the people that this will be one of the most stable governments in the State and will work towards solving people’s problems.”
Having turned his swearing-in ceremony into a show of opposition unit, the Chief Minister suggested that a lot was riding on the success of the alliance government. “I have to be very careful,” he said, about running the coalition government.
Of the many non-BJP leaders who had travelled to Bengaluru for the swearing-in, Mr Kumaraswamy said they weren’t just here for him. “The leaders have not come here to support me but to give a message that there will be a big change in 2019,” he said.
The Saffron BJP could not get a majority despite emerging as the single largest party in the Assembly elections. Its State president B.S. Yeddyurappa had to step down without taking the floor test as the party could not get MLAs from other parties.
( With Agenvy Inputs ).
