BENGALURU: With only hours left before the monsoon session of the joint legislature begins on Thursday, Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Wednesday allotted portfolios to 19 new ministers, ending a 10-day suspense over the distribution after expanding his cabinet.
After weighing options, the Congress high command, after getting the nod of LoP in LS Rahul Gandhi, gave a go ahead for the distribution of the portfolios.
But key issues, including representation for a woman in the cabinet and the induction of sulking Vijayanagar MLA and influential Bengaluru leader M Krishnappa, and Byadagi MLA Basavaraj Shivannanavar, who has the backing of former CM Siddaramaiah, remained unresolved.
Shivakumar allotted portfolios to 19 of his colleagues, following which Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot issued a notification. The Chief Minister held an emergency meeting with his entire cabinet at his home office Krishna and chalked out a strategy to counter the opposition BJP and JD(S) party MLAs who were keen to put the treasury bench on the mat.
The allotment came with a minor rejig, with the portfolios of two ministers who were sworn in during the first phase being changed.
Senior leader KH Muniyappa gets the social welfare department and Ramalinga Reddy forest and ecology. They had handled the food and civil supplies and water resources portfolios respectively, which are now being given to Shivajinagar MLA Rizwan Arshad and N Chaluvarayaswamy, respectively. The agriculture portfolio held by Chaluvarayaswamy was given to Malavalli MLA PM Narendraswamy.
The High Command conceded to the demand of KH Muniyappa, who was sulking, while unresolved issued are likely to be taken up after the completion of the 10-day session.
Meanwhile, Zameer Ahmed has been given the housing portfolio, which he held previously, but the minority welfare and waqf departments were being given additionally to health and family welfare minister UT Khader.
It is being interpreted as the high command clipping the wings of Zameer, who had allegedly indulged in the anti-party activities in the Davanagere South bypolls, giving jitters to the party's official candidate Samarth Shamanuru, son of minister SS Mallikarjun, who has been allotted the mines and geology department once again.
Ballari Rural MLA B Nagendra, who was accused in multi-crore Maharshi Valmiki ST Corporation scam and against whom the CBI filed a chargesheet in the special court for the people's representatives, was given the low-profile planning and statistics portfolio.
Virajpet MLA AS Ponnanna, who was legal advisor when Siddaramaiah was CM, was proposed to be the deputy speaker but is now appointed as CM's political secretary, while former minister Mankala Vaidya was proposed for the deputy speaker's post.
Senior MLA RV Deshpande has been appointed chairman of the Administrative Reforms Commission with cabinet rank, a position he held previously.
Portfolios
DK Shivakumar, Chief Minister
Finance, Cabinet Affairs
Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms
Intelligence
Information
Law, Justice and Human Rights
Parliamentary Affairs and Legislation
Agriculture Marketing
Commissionerate of Town & Country Planning
All the Urban Local bodies falling under BDA and BMRDA area
All unallotted portfolios
BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan: Housing
Ramalinga Reddy: Forest, Ecology and Environment
Lakshman Savadi: Co-operation excluding Agriculture Marketing
Rudrappa Manappa Lamani: Sugar and Textiles
KH Muniyappa: Social Welfare
Shivaraj Tangadagi: Backward Classes Welfare and Kannada and Culture
UT Khader: Minority Welfare, Haj & Wakf; Health and Family Welfare
T Raghumurthy: ST Welfare
Dr Ajay Singh: Minor Irrigation & Science and Technology
Cheluvarayaswamy: Major and Medium Irrigation
Madhu Bangarappa: Primary and Secondary Education
Basavaraj Raya Reddy: Higher Education
Shivalinge Gowda: Excise from Finance Department
Puttaranga Shetty: Animal Husbandry and Sericulture
Vijayananda Kashappanavar: Small Scale Industries, Public Enterprises
Santosh Lad: Labour and Employment
KS Basavanthappa: Muzrai, Fisheries, Ports and Inland Water
SS Mallikarjun: Mines and Geology, Horticulture
Rizwan Arshad: Food and Civil Supply, Consumer Affairs
Narendra Swamy: Agriculture
HC Balakrishna: Municipal Administration
B Nagendra: Planning and Statistics
