When Nobody Wins: How a Governor Picks the Next Government

In a hung assembly the Governor invites someone to try forming a government, but real proof of majority happens on the Assembly floor.

Sarkaria's order of preference: pre-poll alliance first, then single-largest party, then post-poll coalitions.

The 1994 SR Bommai ruling made the floor test the only valid measure of majority, not the Raj Bhavan's judgment.

A pre-poll alliance is treated as one party, which can outrank a bigger single party.

Delays, late floor tests and pro-tem speaker choices are where most disputes erupt.