Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru
Bengaluru, May 23: With hours to go for JD(S) chief H D Kumarswamy to take oath as the chief minister of Karnataka for the second time, sources have said that the floor test which was supposed to be held on Thursday May 24 has been postponed to Friday May 25.
While the floor test would now be held on Friday, nomination of speaker and deputy speaker will be done on Thursday. The decision was taken by senior Congress leaders after a meeting held at hotel Hilton here on Wednesday May 23.
Meanwhile, the stage is set for the swearing-in ceremony of Kumaraswamy as chief minister and G Parameshwara of Congress as deputy chief minister.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu, BSP leader Mayawati, and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav have reached Bengaluru for the grand ceremony to be held at the eastern gate of the Vidhana Soudha at 4.30 pm.
Along with a galaxy of anti-BJP leaders of various states, Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena and M K Stalin, leader of Tamil Nadu's DMK were also invited to witness the swearing-in. However, both will skip the ceremony. Thackeray is unable to attend as he is busy with the upcoming Palghar bypolls, his party said. "We cannot go but our best wishes are with him (Kumaraswamy)," Sanjay Raut of the Shiv Sena told news agency ANI. M K Stalin is unable to attend due to the violence at Thoothukudi amid the anti-Sterlite protests. Actor-politician Kamal Haasan will also skip the ceremony and will visit Thoothukudi.
Ahead of the swearing-in ceremony, Kumaraswamy visted Chamundeshwari temple along with wife Anita. Kumaraswamy has been seeking blessings at temples in various parts of the state for the past two days. He also visited Dharmasthala temple on Tuesday May 22.
The venue of the swearing-in ceremony has turned into fortress with heavy security being deployed. With many important leaders slated to attend the ceremony, police are no leaving no stone unturned to ensure that everything goes smoothly. Section 144 has been imposed around Vidhana Soudha and over 3,000 traffic police personnel have been deployed in Bengaluru as traffic snarls are expected on roads leading to Vidhana Soudha.
Meanwhile, the BJP has declared that its leaders would be protesting the formation of the Congress-JD(S) government. The BJP is observing the day as 'Anti-Mandate Day' against the alleged 'unholy alliance government'. Yeddyurappa, former chief minister of Karnataka, has also joined the BJP's protests.