New Delhi: A Supreme Court bench on Friday asked Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa will to prove majority support in a floor test which should take place in the Karnataka assembly at 04:00 pm on Saturday.
Following the Apex Court's order, the Karnataka assembly is expected to be convened at 11 am tomorrow. The pro-term speaker will need to administer the oath of office to all the newly-elected MLAs before a floor test can take place in the evening.
In another setback for Yeddyurappa, the court said he couldn't appoint an Anglo-Indian member to the House. One of Karnataka's 225 assembly is reserved for the Anglo-Indian community.
BJP’s BS Yeddyurappa had sworn in as Karnataka Chief Minister Thursday. He took oath as Chief Minister hours after he was invited by Fivernor Vajubhai Vala to form government in the state and also asked him to prove majority within 15 days.. BJP had ended as single largest party winning 104 seats – 08 short of a majority.
The Janata Dal (S) and Congress had challenged in the Supreme Court the invitation to Yeddyurappa by the Governor. Congress which won 78 seats formed an alliance with the Janata Dal (S) which has 37 MLAs. They had also staked claim to form the government in Karnataka. Governor Vajubhai Vala however invited Yeddyurappa to form government.
Though it is a tradition to invite a single largest party to form government, the governors in Goa, Manipur and Meghalaya where Congress was single largest party after the recently held state elections, it was sidelined and instead the BJP was given a chance.
“Inviting Yeddyurappa despite he does not have numbers on his side and giving him 15 days’ time to prove majority will only give rise to poaching”, Congress spokesperson said.
Janata Dal (S) leader HD Kumaraswamy on the other hand claimed that the BJP is already on this job alleging that the latter had offered 100 crores to its JD (S) MLAs to support the BJP government in Karnataka.
Earlier, the Supreme Court in a hearing at 02:00 am Thursday refused to stay Yeddyurappa swearing in ceremony saying it can’t do this on “mere speculations”.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi represented the petitioners and Attorney General K K Venugopal appeared for the respondent Union of India and senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi appeared for two BJP MLAs.
Singhvi argued that the Governor must have invited the post-poll alliance of Congress and Janata Dal (S) to form government as no single party had secured a majority.
Attorney General K K Venugopal argued that a floor test was the best to know if the Governor’s decision was right. “Heavens are not going to fall as far as the other side is concerned if that is going to be heard after the 15 days,” he said.
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