BackIn bid to placate new legislators, Yediyurappa to expand cabinet this week
The induction will take the number of ministers to 31 out of allocated 34 ministerial berthsThe 13 MLAs to be inducted include 10 who defected from Congress and JD(S) to help BJP return to power in the state
PremiumBENGALURU : Karnataka chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Sunday said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will induct 13 members to the state cabinet on Thursday, in an attempt to placate new legislators and manage expectations of the old guard.
“The swearing-in ceremony will be held on Thursday at 10.30 am," Yediyurappa said. The 13 persons will include 10 who defected from the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular), or JD(S), helping the Yediyurappa-led BJP come back to power. The induction will take the number of ministers to 31 out of the allocated 34 ministerial berths. This would leave three slots vacant to placate dissidents, if any.
The cabinet conundrum comes at a time when Yediyurappa has been at the receiving end of criticism, including over payment of dues from the Centre and for being forced to defend the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Centre that has cut back the share of taxes to Karnataka according to the new calculations by the 15th Finance Commission. The state will see a cut of 22.5% in its share of funds, which declines from 4.71% in the 14th Finance Commission to 3.65% in the interim report of the 15th Finance Commission.
The Centre is yet to pay Karnataka dues of several thousand crores in devolution of taxes, goods and services tax (GST), and the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS), as well as other things. This resulted in Yediyurappa struggling to arrange funds for flood relief and the state budget to be presented on 5 March.
In the cabinet expansion, Mahesh Kumathalli, the legislator from Athani, could be overlooked among the rebels, according to some BJP leaders. This is because Laxman Savadi, who he defeated in 2018, is the deputy chief minister.
Shashikala Annasaheb Jolle from Nippani in Belagavi is already a minister, while Ramesh Jarkiholi—one of the main catalysts in the resignation drama—will be included, leaving no room to placate more people from the same district in the ministry.
Senior leaders Umesh Katti, Arvind Limbavalli and C.P. Yogeshwar, who lost to H.D. Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) in Channapatna in the 2018 assembly polls, are the likely choices from the old guard, according to BJP leaders aware of the developments.
However, since the bypoll in December, the rebels, including N. Nagaraju (M.T.B) and A.H. Vishwanath, the two who lost, have grown increasingly impatient and are demanding ministerial berths. However, Yediyurappa clarified that those who lost will not be made ministers as it is likely to further strain relations between the two sides.
Yediyurappa does not have to worry much about the Congress and the JD(S), who are struggling with internal problems. “The Congress has to be extra cautious in dealing with Karnataka while the BJP can get away by offending anyone in the party," said A. Narayana, political analyst and faculty at Azim Premji University.
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