Karnataka BJP president BS Yeddyurappa said on July 26 that Governor Vajubhai Vala would swear him in as Chief Minister of the state at 6 pm, after he called on the Governor at Raj Bhavan to stake a claim to form the government.

Governor agrees to same-day oath

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Yeddyurappa said he had asked to be sworn in between 6 and 6.15 pm, and that the Governor had agreed and handed him a letter. He said the names of ministers would be decided after discussions with the party’s national president.

Yeddyurappa said he would send invitations for the ceremony to Siddaramaiah, the Congress Legislature Party leader, and to outgoing Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, and would also try to call both of them to invite them personally.

Background

For the previous couple of days, Yeddyurappa had been awaiting “instructions” from the BJP high command on staking a claim, after the Congress-JD(S) coalition lost the floor test on Tuesday. On Thursday, state BJP leaders Basavaraj Bommai, JC Madhuswamy, Jagdish Shettar and Arvind Limbavali, along with Yeddyurappa’s son Vijayendra, called on party president Amit Shah in New Delhi, reportedly to talk about forming the government.

Also on Thursday, three rebel Congress MLAs were disqualified by Speaker KR Ramesh Kumar under the anti-defection law. Kumaraswamy’s coalition, in power for 14 months, had collapsed after losing the confidence vote, ending a three-week tussle.

What happened next

After the coalition government fell in July 2019, Yeddyurappa returned as Chief Minister of Karnataka.

See also: Bharatiya Janata Party | Political leaders

Originally published on 26 July 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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