Cong bags karnataka speaker's post ahead of kumaraswamy floor test

Cong bags Karnataka speaker's post ahead of Kumaraswamy floor test The political uncertainty in Karnataka will come to an end today if the H D Kumaraswamy-led Congress-JD(S) government sails through the floor test as it is expected to do

Turmoil over government formation in Karnataka will end soon with newly sworn-in Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy facing a floor test in Bengaluru on Friday to prove his majority. While Kumaraswamy should sail through smoothly with the Janata Dal (Secular)-Congress coalition's support behind him, two possible irritants for the health of his government have already emerged.

One of the possible threats Kumaraswamy faces is from a repeat of Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) 'Operation Kamala', while the other has emerged from his coalition partner, the Congress, which has said that no decision has been taken on the full extent of his tenure as chief minister.Kumaraswamy was sworn in at a grand assembly of Opposition and regional leaders, hailing from parties looking to form a joint front against the BJP ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, on Wednesday.

The BJP emerged as the single largest party with 104 seats (only eight seats short of the simple majority mark of 112) in the high-voltage state Assembly poll that saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi launch into a rally blitz. However, the Congress party with 78 seats and the JD(S) with 37 seats, along with two independent candidates, stitched up a post-poll alliance with a total of 117 MLAs.

Here are the top ten developments around Karnataka government formation: 1) Congress' K R Ramesh elected speaker: Congress' K R Ramesh Kumar was on Friday unanimously elected as the speaker of the Karnataka Assembly after the BJP withdrew S Suresh Kumar's candidature for the Speaker's post.Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy thanked opposition leaders for unanimously electing the speaker. "To all Opposition leaders, I want to express my gratitude to have ultimately decided to make it a unanimous election. It is quite rare to have a unanimous candidate like this," Kumaraswamy said.

2) 'Withdrew nomination to maintain dignity of the Speaker's post': BJP's B S Yeddyurappa said his party withdrew the nomination of BJP candidate as it wanted the election to be unanimous in order to maintain dignity of the Speaker's post.We withdrew (nomination of BJP candidate) as we wanted the election to be unanimous in order to maintain dignity of the Speaker's post :BJP's BS Yeddyurappa in #Karnataka Assembly pic.twitter.com/cdpfE8tR4y 3) Kumaraswamy suspects another 'Operation Kamala': After taking oath, Kumaraswamy said he had an apprehension that the BJP would try to repeat 'Operation Kamala' to bring down his government. The term 'Operation Kamala' or 'Operation Lotus' was coined in 2008 when BJP state chief Yeddyurappa took over as the chief minister. The party was short of three MLAs for a simple majority. As part of the operation, some Congress and JD(S) MLAs were persuaded to join the saffron party, relinquish their membership of the Assembly, and recontest elections. Their resignations brought down the numbers required for a victory during the trust vote, which Yeddyurappa won.

4) 'No decision yet on whether Kumaraswamy will serve full five-year term as CM': In an indication of irritants Kumaraswamy could face in the future, a day ahead of the trust vote, Congress leader and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara said the Congress-JD(S) coalition was yet to discuss modalities about Kumaraswamy continuing as chief minister for a full five-year term.

5) Congress-JD(S) yet to decide on portfolio division: Parameshwara also said that the Congress was yet to decide on what portfolios have to go to the JD(S). He said, "We are also yet to decide on what portfolios have to go to them and what should be with us, then five-year term -- whether they should be or we should also... All those modalities we have still not discussed."

6) Kumaraswamy denies talks of power-sharing formula for CM's chair: Ahead of his swearing-in, Kumaraswamy had dismissed reports about his party working out a power-

sharing formula with the Congress, where the two parties would head the government for 30 months each. His coalition partner, the Congress, had said, "No such talks have taken place."

7) Congress-JD(S) coordination committee to be created after floor test: According to Parameshwara, Congress and JD(S) leaders, along with the chief minister, will sit together to decide on a coordination committee after the floor test today. "At the same time, we will form an empanelled group to formulate a common minimum programme," he said.

8) JD(S) to nominate its candidate for Deputy Speaker's post: As decided by the coalition partners, the JD(S) will name one of its senior legislators to the Deputy Speaker's post after the Speaker's election.

9) Congress, JD(S) MLAs to stay in hotels until Kumaraswamy wins trust vote: All of the JD(S) and Congress' legislators continue to stay at hotels in Bengaluru under the watch of their respective leaders until Kumaraswamy wins the trial of strength. "We have asked all our MLAs to stay together in the city for one more day to ensure their presence in the Assembly to avoid cross-voting or abstention during crucial voting on the confidence motion," said a Congress official.

10) Kumaraswamy Cabinet to be expanded next week: Kumaraswamy plans to expand his Cabinet next week after the Congress submits the names for its quota of 21 Cabinet posts and he selects 11 of his legislators to fill his party's quota. "Discussions on the Cabinet expansion and who will be the ministers will be held during the weekend as the leaders will be free after the trust vote on Friday," a JD(S) official said.

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