Former Karnataka CM HD Kumaraswamy takes oath as Union Minister

NEW DELHI : Former Karnataka chief minister and Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Kumaraswamy on Sunday took oath as a Union Cabinet Minister in the NDA government.

He was one of the two JD(S) candidates who won the Lok Sabha elections. Kumaraswamy won the Mandya constituency.

This time, BJP and JD(S) contested the Lok Sabha elections together, with the former fighting 25 out of 28 seats in the state and the latter contesting three seats.

HD Kumaraswamy is also a two-time Chief Minister of Karnataka. He served as the Karnataka CM from 2006-7 and then from 2018-19. He is currently serving as the president of JD(S).

Earlier on Friday, HD Kumaraswamy affirmed his party’s support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to form a “stable government.”

#WATCH | JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy sworn in as Union Minister in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government pic.twitter.com/N5zBWhppLz

— ANI (@ANI) June 9, 2024

Kumaraswamy said, “We are all with him (PM Modi), we are joining hands with only NDA. Not only me but the entire country has a lot of expectations from PM Modi regarding developments, several problems have to be solved.”

“There is no demand at all. Stable government is required for the country, and for that, we are joining hands with him,” he added.

Narendra Modi took oath as Prime Minister of India for his third successive term on Sunday at an impressive ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan which is being attended by leaders from India’s neighbourhood and Indian Ocean region.

President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Narendra Modi, followed by other members of his team of ministers.
PM Modi was seen wearing a full-sleeved white kurta with churidar and blue half jacket.

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA secured 293 seats in the Lok Sabha elections. BJP won 240 seats on its own. In the 543-strong lower house of the Indian parliament, 272 is the minimum majority figure.

Notably, PM Modi is the second Indian leader to win a third term after founding prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. (ANI)