Bangalore, May 25 (Agencies): Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Friday won the Karnataka Assembly’s vote of confidence in the coalition government of his Janata Dal Secular with the Congress, as 117 MLAs voting in favour.
Kumaraswamy had moved the one-line motion soon after the unanimous election of Ramesh Kumar as the Speaker.
Lawmakers of the BJP, which had emerged as the single-largest party in the May 12 elections with 104 members but fell short of the 112 required for a majority, had walked out in protest.
Seeking the trust vote, Kumaraswamy asserted that his coalition government would complete its full five-year term.
“We will be stable for five years. We will work for the people. We are not here to fulfil our personal interests,” said Kumaraswamy, 58, who had been sworn in as chief minister on Wednesday.
The Congress government led by Siddaramaiah, which lost the elections, was only the second government in the state’s history to have served its full term.
Kumaraswamy said he was conscious that he was not running a majority government.
”I am also pained that the people have not placed their trust on me,” he said, apparently referring to the JDS not being given a clear mandate by the voters.
The Congress has 78 members in the legislative assembly, the JDS 36, and the Bahujan Samaj Party one. The alliance has also claimed support of the lone lawmaker of the Karnataka Pragnyavantha Janatha Party and an independent.
State BJP chief B.S. Yeddyurappa had stepped down last Saturday, two days after he assumed office as the chief minister, without going through a floor test.
Kumaraswamy said neither he nor the Deve Gowda family ever hankered after power, and pointed out that they had spent much of their political life in the opposition.
”I am not hankering after power... nor my (Gowda) family... we have spent much of our political life in the opposition,” he added.
Kumaraswamy also said there was a “blot” on party chief H.D. Deve Gowda after he joined hands with the BJP to form a coalition government in 2006.
But he was now relieved that the “blot” had been removed (with the formation of a coalition government with the Congress).
The 224-member Assembly has an effective strength of 221. The election for Jayanagar seat was countermanded following the death of the BJP candidate, and deferred in RR Nagar over allegations of electoral malpractice.
