BENGALURU: For B S Yediyurappa, who has been facing the heat from forces within and outside his party — the BJP — ever since he took oath as chief minister, additional allocation of portfolios to his ministers has come as a relief.
For a man caught between disqualified MLAs of the Congress and JDS, his own partymen who didn’t make it to the Cabinet, a “non-cooperative” Central leadership and disgruntled ministers within his Cabinet, Yediyurappa has finally found some peace.
On Friday, additional portfolios were allocated, albeit temporarily, to 14 ministers, including to two Deputy CMs. While the Chief Minister’s Office insisted that the additional allocation was meant to take the burden off Yediyurappa — who was heading more than a dozen portfolios — but there is more than what meets the eye.
The Election Commission’s decision to defer the bypolls to 15 Assembly constituencies in Karnataka to December first brought relief to Yediyurappa who decided to act quick.
By making a temporary additional allocation of portfolios, not only did he try to pacify the ministers within his Cabinet who were disgruntled about ministries that were allocated to them, but he also made it clear that a Cabinet expansion is unlikely in the near future.
“The next Cabinet expansion is now possible only after the bypolls. This move will also give confidence to the disqualified MLAs, that if they win seats, then they will be accommodated in the Cabinet,” said a source close to Yediyurappa.
Ministers like C T Ravi, who had expressed disappointment over their allocated ministries, have been given additional responsibility, in this case — the sugar ministry. “This is just a temporary arrangement. The ministers will likely have it barely for a couple of months. Reallocation of ministries is a different matter,” the source added.
While some ministers like KS Eshwarappa are reluctant to accept the additional portfolios — youth empowerment and sports — others like DyCM Dr C N Ashwath Narayan and Revenue minister R Ashoka seem to be disappointed that the coveted Bengaluru development ministry has evaded them.