Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao met Karnataka Chief Minister designate HD Kumaraswamy in Bengaluru on Tuesday (May 22) and said that he will not able to attend Wednesday's swearing-in function because of a prior commitment. Rao congratulated Kumaraswamy and also met former prime minister HD Deve Gowda in Bengaluru.
"Tomorrow I have a Collector's conference in Hyderabad. So I thought I should meet Mr Kumaraswamy and extend my good wishes. Sometime later I will come but tomorrow I will not be there. Good luck to Mr Kumaraswamy, good luck to Karnataka," he said in Bengaluru on Tuesday evening. DMK working president MK Stalin will also not be attending the swearing-in function as he would visit Tuticorin where 9 people died after the protests demanding closure of Vedanta's Sterlite Copper unit took a violent turn on Tuesday. "I am going to Thoothukudi (Tuticorin) tomorrow to meet those who are affected due to and are protesting against the Sterlite Plant," Stalin said. Congress and JD (S) leaders held a meeting on Tuesday (May 22) evening to discuss the sharing of cabinet berths in the new coalition government. Out of the 34 ministries, the Congress will keep 22 while the JD (S) will get 12, said Congress' Karnataka general secretary KC Venugopal. Among other things decided in the meeting are that Congress' G Parameswara and KR Ramesh Kumar would be the Deputy Chief Minister and the Speaker, respectively. The portfolios would be allocated on May 24. Amid reports of difference between the two parties over the sharing of cabinet berths, CM designate Kumaraswamy said that "Everything is alright and there are no differences". The ceremony to be held on Wednesday at 4.30 pm will be attended by BSP leader Mayawati, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, DMK leader M.K. Stalin, former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, former Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, CPM leader Sitaram Yechury, CPI leader D. Raja, and NCP leader Sharad Pawar.