Senior Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Ashok Gehlot will arrive in Delhi today and hold discussions with Rahul Gandhi
Ahead of HD Kumaraswamy's swearing in ceremony on May 23, top leaders of the Congress will on Sunday hold discussions with party chief Rahul Gandhi in the national capital to chalk out its strategy and power-sharing arrangement with the JD(S).
Senior leaders of the Karnataka Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) are also scheduled to meet today to chalk out modalities of the coalition. The newly-elected MLAs from both the parties are expected to attend the meeting in Bengaluru.
According to sources, senior Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad and Ashok Gehlot will arrive in Delhi today and hold discussions with the party chief.
"Everything will be decided in Delhi tomorrow, when the top leaders of the party will hold discussions with Rahul Gandhi," a Congress leader in Bengaluru said on Saturday.
The Congress has extended support to the JD(S) to form a government in the southern state under a power-sharing agreement. While Kumaraswamy will be the chief minister, the deputy chief minister is expected to be from the Congress and a Dalit is likely to be appointed to the post.
The three-day-old BJP government in Karnataka collapsed on Saturday with Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa resigning minutes before the scheduled trust vote in the Assembly.
Kumaraswamy met Governor Vajubhai Vala soon after Yeddyurappa's resignation and was invited to form the government.
After meeting the governor, Kumaraswamy had announced that the swearing-in ceremony would take place tentatively between 12 and 1.50 pm at Kanteerava stadium on May 21. However, he later in the evening said the ceremony would be held on May 23 as May 21 happens to be the death anniversary of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
"We are going to take oath on Wednesday as Monday is Rajiv Gandhi's death anniversary. That is not a proper date. In the entire country, all the Congress workers will be attending death anniversary functions. Conducting oath-taking ceremony at that time is not good. In the today's meeting, we discussed this only. On Monday, we will discuss about the oath ceremony," Kumaraswamy told ANI.
After a meeting with Congress leaders, Kumaraswamy said they also discussed about moving the confidence of motion on May 24.
He said he would meet Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi on May 21 to extend his gratitude to them. "I will also discuss how many Congress and JD(S) MLAs will become ministers," said Kumaraswamy.
He said a coordination committee would be formed to prepare a common minimum programme to implement the promises made by the two coalition partners.
Kumaraswamy said there were no other discussions with the coalition partners other than winning the confidence vote.
The newly-formed alliance has claimed support of 117 MLAs in the 224-member House with an effective strength of 221.
The political instability in the state stemmed from a split verdict the electorate gave on May 15, with the BJP emerging as the single-largest party but falling short of a majority.
The Congress, which finished second with 78 seats, moved swiftly and stitched an alliance with 37-member JD(S), and even backed its leader H D Kumaraswamy for chief ministership, plunging the state into a welter of confusion, with accusations of bribery and poaching flying thick and fast.
(With PTI inputs)
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 "Congress supporters raise posters of party President Rahul Gandhi and JD(S) chief HD Kumarswamy on Saturday")
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