Will meet Karnataka Governor at 10 AM to stake claim: BS Yeddyurappa

BENGALURU: The Lingayat strongman and Karnataka BJP chief BS Yeddyurappa on Friday said that he will meet the state's Governor Vajubhai Vala to stake claim for government formation in the southern state. 

Yeddyurappa said that he will meet the Governor around 10 AM to stake claim to form government in Karnataka, three days after the HD Kumaraswamy-led coalition failed a trust vote.

"I am going to meet the Governor today at 10 AM to stake claim to form the government and I will request him to hold oath ceremony today itself," Yeddyurappa, a three-time chief minister, told news agency ANI.

BS Yeddyurappa, BJP, #Karnataka: I am going to meet the Governor today at 10am to stake claim to form the government and I will request him to hold oath ceremony today itself. pic.twitter.com/8cSQ5p8Ph2

— ANI (@ANI) July 26, 2019

The announcement brings to rest intense speculations that his party was treading cautiously to secure enough numbers in the assembly before giving its nod to BSY to meet the Governor and stake claim for the government formation.

The announcement was also unexpected since it came a day after the Karnataka Speaker disqualified three rebel lawmakers, reducing the strength of the Assembly.

Congress' Ramesh Jarkiholi and Mahesh Kumathahalli were disqualified by the Speaker on Thursday evening. The third lawmaker to be disqualified is R Shankar - the legislator from Ranebennur - one of the two Independents who switched sides.

The Speaker clarified that those who have been disqualified can't contest election again.

Ramesh said that he will decide on other complaints “in a couple of days.”

Karnataka CM HD Kumaraswamy had submitted his resignation to Governor Vajubhai Vala after the Congress-JD(S)-led government lost the trust vote in the Vidhana Soudha on Tuesday, 23 July.

In his last official act as caretaker CM, he announced the Debt Relief Act for poor farmers and landless labourers on Wednesday.

The coalition got just 99 votes against the BJP’s 105 in the floor test, losing the trust vote by 6 votes.