Dharam Singh sworn in as Karnataka CM

The political stalemate in Karnataka came to an end when Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader N Dharam Singh was sworn in as the chief minister by Governor T N Chaturvedi here on Friday.

Singh will head the first coalition government in the southern state. He has declared that the state Cabinet would be expanded soon after the two coalition partners finalise their list of probables.

Besides focusing on keeping the coalition intact, a key challenge for this government is the manner in which it would manage the drought situation in the state.

In his first interaction with the media as the chief minister of Karnataka, Singh said since the state was facing a multitude of problems due to three consecutive years of drought and infrastructure bottlenecks, he would accord top priority to the problems of farmers and the rural poor.

"We will constitute a coordination committee to formulate a common minimum programme. After discussing the issues with my colleague (Siddaramaiah) and other Cabinet ministers, we will list out the priorities and implement them on a war-footing," he asserted.

Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) legislature party leader K Siddaramiah was also sworn in as deputy chief minister of the state.

The governor administered the oath of office and secrecy on the lawns of Raj Bhavan between 1:15-1.30 pm, considered as an auspicious time. Both the ministers took oath in Kannada, the state's native language.

JD-S president and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda was not present at the swearing-in ceremony as he was still away in Delhi. Gowda has played a key role to form this coalition government in a bid to keep the BJP out of power. Outgoing chief minister S M Krishna too was not present at the official ceremony.

Stating that the ministers would be inducted in a day or two, Singh added, "Leaders of the Congress and JD-S will be meeting this evening to short-list the names of prospective ministers. From our side, we will recommend a few names to the party high command for approval. We expect a similar list from the JD-S by then."

Expressing gratitude to Congress president Sonia Gandhi for selecting him as the party's leader to form the first coalition government in the state along with the JD-S, Singh said, "I am thankful to madam for reposing faith and confidence in my leadership. We are confident of completing the 5-year tenure with the support of both the coalition parties and the blessings of the people."

On whether he foresees hitches between the two coalition parties, Singh said differences, if any, would be resolved amicably. Singh was elected for the eighth consecutive term from the Jewargi Assembly constituency in Gulbarga district of Hyderabad-Karnataka region.

As he hails from the backward district of Gulbarga, Singh hinted that a special package would be devised for the development of the Hyderabad-Karnataka region by his government.