Cong, JD(S)

The chief minister-designate also said that both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi agreed to attend his swearing-in ceremony on May 23. “I had a warm and cordial meeting this evening, in Delhi, with Kumaraswamy ji. We discussed the political situation in Karnataka and other matters of mutual interest. I will be attending his swearing-in as CM of Karnataka, on Wednesday, in Bengaluru,” the Congress president later tweeted.

A Congress functionary, familiar with the developments, said the function will be short as only a few leaders from both sides are expected to take the oath of office. However, the full-fledged cabinet expansion will take place after Kumaraswamy wins the floor test he is expected to take within 24 hours after being sworn-in as the chief minister for the second time in 12 years.

Earlier, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said that he along with general secretaries Ashok Gehlot and Venugopal, who all played an important role in stitching the alliance, had briefed the Congress chief about the developments in the state before his meeting with Kumaraswamy.

There is also an internal tussle going on in the Karnataka Congress with a section suggesting that the party should have two deputy chief ministers given that it has more number of legislators than the JD(S), said a Congress leader from the state.

The 66-year-old state Congress chief G Parameshwara, a Dalit, is a strong contender for the post.

Former minister DK Shivakumar, who was instrumental in keeping the Congress flock together in the run-up to BJP leader BS Yeddyurappa’s trust vote, is also fancying his chances. But that possibility appears to be dim given that he is a Vokkaliga, a community to which Kumaraswamy belongs.

If he doesn’t get the deputy CM’S post, he is demanding that he should get the home minister’s portfolio along with the post of the state Congress chief, said a leader close to Shivakumar.

Two Congress MLAS, Shivanand Patil and Yashvanthraya Goud, are also threatening to resign if MB Patil, the former Congress minister who led the demand for separate status to Lingayats, is made deputy CM or given a cabinet berth.

In the wake of internal differences, and to avoid desertions, both the Congress and the JD(S) have decided not to lower their guards and confine their respective legislators to hotels till the floor test.

A Karnataka Congress officebearer said his party will give representation to all sections of society in the next council of ministers. It has also been decided that the Congress will get a share of five seats in the upcoming legislative council elections as compared to three for the JD(S).

Sonia Gandhi, who was initially scheduled to meet Kumaraswamy at her residence, later decided to meet him at Rahul’s 12 Tughlak Lane residence in the Capital.

Prior to his meeting with the Gandhis, Kumaraswamy met Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati and discussed the role of regional parties in stopping the BJP from coming back to power in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

A JD(S) leader said the two leaders also discussed the shape of the Congress-jd(s) government and the possibility of sole BSP legislator N Mahesh getting a cabinet berth. The BSP and the JD(S) had a pre-poll alliance in the state.

Kumaraswamy’s swearing-in ceremony will be a show of strength by opposition parties. Apart from Mayawati, the JD(S) has also invited chief ministers Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal), V Narayanasamy (Puducherry), N Chandrababu Naidu (Andhra Pradesh), K Chandrasekhar Rao (Telangana), Pinarayi Vijayan (Kerala), and Arvind Kejriwal (Delhi). Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury are also likely to attend. juvenile has been heard by the board on November 22 and he was asked various questions to assess his capacity to commit and understand the consequences of the act he allegedly committed and he gave answers to all the questions very confidently. The judge stated in the order that the juvenile also knows how to cook up a story in order to save himself which in turn shows that he has adequate mental capacity. He was mature enough “to understand the consequences of his actions and to think of ways to escape from lawful punishment for the offence”. On January 8, the special children’s court had rejected the bail application of the accused.