Even if the new Karnataka government, formed after the congress party’s resounding victory in the elections wanted to convey a message of a united opposition through its swearing-in ceremony, it may have to do so without some of the prominent leaders.
As per news reports, invitations have not been sent to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Telangana Chief Minister KCR and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. It has been learnt that these opposition leaders will be absent due to prior commitments,
In addition to this, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Andhra Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and BSP leader Mayawati are not on the guest list.
Sharad Pawar, MK Stalin, Nitish Kumar to attend
However, the ceremony will see the presence of invited guests such as Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, his deputy Tejashwi Yadav, and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
Other notable invitees include Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, D Raja and Sitaram Yechury of the Left, and actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan. The Congress's Chief Ministers Ashok Gehlot of Rajasthan, Bhupesh Baghel of Chhattisgarh, and Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu of Himachal Pradesh have also been invited.
Crucial task lies ahead
Ahead of the ceremony, scheduled for 12:30 pm on Saturday at the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, Chief Minister-designate Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar flew to Delhi to discuss the crucial task of selecting ministers with the Congress leadership.
The party faces the challenge of forming a cabinet that ensures representation from all communities, regions, factions, and generations of legislators.
Five days after the Congress's victory in the Karnataka elections and after extensive deliberation among the party's leaders, Siddaramaiah was formally elected as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party in a meeting on Thursday. Following this, he staked his claim with the Governor to form the government.
(To receive our E-paper on WhatsApp daily, please click here. To receive it on Telegram, please click here. We permit sharing of the paper's PDF on WhatsApp and other social media platforms.)
