MYSORE: It was a scramble at the Lalitha Mahal helipad in Mysore as Janata Dal (Secular) leaders and workers jostled with each other to welcome Chief Minister-designate H.D. Kumaraswamy.

Hundreds of workers, who had gathered at the helipad with garlands and bouquets hours before Mr. Kumaraswamy's arrival, broke the security cordon to outdo each other in welcoming the Chief Minister-designate.

The moment the choppers were sighted over Lalitha Mahal helipad, the restive crowd raised slogans hailing the Chief Minister in waiting. "Kumaraswamy zindabad" and "Kumarannange jayawagali" rent the air amidst the flapping of the chopper's blades.

Mr. Kumaraswamy, who was scheduled to arrive at 11.30 a.m., landed at the Lalitha Mahal helipad in at 2 p.m. He was accompanied by Hunsur MLA G.T. Deve Gowda and Pandavapura MLA C.S. Puttaraju, besides N. Cheluvaraya Swamy and D.T. Jayakumar.

Another chopper, which landed before the one carrying Mr. Kumaraswamy, had BJP MLA from Bannur Suneetha Veerappa Gowda and Hanur MLA Parimala Nagappa on board.

A large number of Janata Dal (S) leaders, including former MLAs Basavaraju and N.L. Bharathi Shankar and Deputy Mayor Suresh Babu were present.

BJP leaders also turned up in good numbers at the venue. BJP's Chamaraja constituency MLA H.S. Shankarlinge Gowda was with the BJP workers.

Though policemen were deployed at the venue with Police Commissioner Pravin Sood himself in attendance, they could do little to control the crowd when the helicopter landed. Minutes before the helicopter carrying Mr. Kumaraswamy could land, partymen spilled all over the tarmac.

Mr. Kumaraswamy's security guards had a tough time clearing the way for the Chief Minister-designate to reach his convoy at the far end of the helipad.

Even when Mr. Kumaraswamy was speaking to presspersons, the high-decibel sloganeering continued, forcing the MLAs to intervene and silence the crowd.

After addressing presspersons, Mr. Kumaraswamy proceeded to the Chamundeshwari Temple atop the Chamundi Hills. He later visited the Srikanteshwara Temple and Suttur Math. He returned to Mysore by road and flew to Bangalore.

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