21 Cabinet rank ministers join BJP ministry in Karnataka

Bangalore - 08 August 2011 (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda today expanded his five-day-old ministry inducting 21 with Cabinet rank but left out the mining magnates Reddy brothers and their close associate Sreeramulu.

All the ministers who were inducted had served in the outgoing ministry of B S Yeddyurappa who had stepped down as Chief Minister following his indictment by Lokayukta in its report on illegal mining.

Karunakara Reddy and Janardhana Reddy, who were also indicted in the Lokayukta report and their close associate from mines rich Bellary district B Sreeramulu, failed to return to the ministry. The three were ministers in BJP's first government in the South headed by Yeddyurappa.

There is no Deputy Chief Minister amid speculation that Jagadish Shettar who was defeated by Gowda, a Yeddyurappa loyalist, in the secret ballot may get this post. The strong bid by Shettar to bag this post was brought to nought by Yeddyurappa, who opposed creation of the post Governor H R Bhardwaj administered oath of office and secrecy to the newly inducted ministers at Raj Bhavan this evening, acceding to a request at short notice by Gowda.

Those who joined the ministry are: Jagadish Shettar, Dr V S Acharya, R Ashoka, C M Udasi, Govind Karjol, S Suresh Kumar, Vishveshwara Hegde Kageri, Shobha Karndlaje, S A Ravindranath, Basavaraj Bommai, Umesh Katti, Murugesh Nirani, S A Ramdas, Laxman Savadi, C C Patil, Revenunaik Belamagi, B N Bacchegowda, J Krishna Palemar, V Somanna, A Naryanaswamy and M P Renukacharya.

With this the strength of the ministry rose to 22, leaving 12 more berths to be filled as Karnataka is entitled for a 34-member ministry as per the constitutional norm.
Besides Gowda, Yeddyurappa and several BJP leaders attended the swearing-in ceremony. According to party sources, under a consensus reached between rival factions, 12 belonging to Yeddyurappa camp and nine from Shettar group were chosen to join the ministry afteer three-days of consultations by the party's central leader Dharmendra Pradhan, who is in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka.

Gowda, who was sworn-in as Chief Minister succeeding Yeddyurappa on August four, faced a tough situation in the ministry making exercise, with rival camps engaged in hard bargaining over allocation of portfolios and demanding creation of two Deputy Chief Minister slots.

According to party sources, Shettar, a prominent Lingayat leader, who had to eat an humble pie in the election of new legislature party leader through secret ballot, demanded that he and Ashok, a Vokkaliga leader of his camp be made Deputy Chief Ministers.

The Yeddyurappa faction, which already gained an upper hand ensuring Gowda's triumph, opposed creation of Deputy Chief Minister's post, apprehending it might create another power centre and also that none of the BJP-ruled states have such an arrangement. Giving a ministerial berth for Somanna, whose name figured in the Lokayukta report on illegal mining submitted last month, has surprised many in the party.

The Reddy brothers and Sreeramulu were conspicuous by their absence at the swearing-in ceremony. Gowda has said he would expand his ministry within a week to fill the remaining vacancies.

Speaking to reporters, Shettar acknowledged that he was keen on becoming the Deputy Chief Minister, but said he accepted the party's decision. "I have worked in the Yeddyurappa ministry as Rural Development Minister. Will do a good job in this ministry also. We are united. We will abide by whatever the decision the party takes", Shettar said.

Ashoka admitted that there were fissures over ministry expansion, but it has been resolved by the party's central leaders. BJP National General Secretary H N Anantkumar, who made a vain bid to elect Shettar as Yeddyurappa's successor, did not attend the swearing-in. Gowda presided over a formal cabinet meeting with the newly inducted ministers soon after the oath taking ceremony.

He told reporters he would visit Delhi tomorrow to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the party's top brass. Gowda said he would continue to implement the developmental programmes launched by the previous government led by Yeddyurappa.