BENGALURU: Lobbying for ministerial berths has resumed, with coalition leaders announcing December 22 as the date for cabinet expansion. Congress has six berths of its quota vacant while JD(S) has two.
Former Water Resources Minister M B Patil and former Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy are said to be almost certain to make it to the cabinet. As for the other aspirants, it is a toss between C S Shivalli and
M T B Nagaraj for a berth under the Kuruba community quota in Congress.
B C Patil, Amare Gouda Bayyapur, Rahim Khan, Tukaram and Parameshwar Naik are the other front runners for a berth in cabinet.
JD(S) leadership is said to be mulling to induct one Dalit and one Muslim. But the party, which is known to spring surprises, could do it again. H K Kumaraswamy and Annadani are the prime contenders from the Dalit community, while the name of MLC B M Farooq is doing the rounds for a berth from the Muslim community. B Satyanarayana, the MLA from Sira, too is in contention.
JD(S) keen to retain chairman’s post
The tussle between Congress and JD(S) for the post of the legislative council chairman was not resolved at the coalition coordination committee meeting held on Wednesday.Congress has been demanding the post as the council needs to elect a full time chairman in place of interim chairman Basavaraj Horatti. JD(S) is keen to continue with Horatti in the post by electing him as full time chairman in the winter session of the legislature.
While Congress is staking claim to the post by stating that it has bigger strength in the house than JD(S), the latter is demanding the post by citing that the Congress has got the Speaker's post in the Assembly and so JD(S) should be allowed to have its chairman in the council. JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda is expected to take up the issue with Congress high command and is likely to have his way.