India court allows BJP to form state government despite lacking majority

A leader from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party was sworn in as chief minister of a key southern Indian state on Thursday, despite lacking a majority, after the Supreme Court rejected a last-minute bid to block the move. Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was the biggest winner in the Karnataka state election but has fallen short of a majority, sparking a scramble for power between the party and its arch rival Congress.
The Congress party, which lost sole control of the state in Saturday's election, tried to stop the BJP's B.S. Yeddyurappa from taking the oath as chief minister by stitching up a last-minute coalition with a smaller regional party. But the BJP argued that it should get the first chance to form a government as it is the largest party and state governor Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala gave it 15 days to prove it has a majority, prompting the Congress to go to court.