BENGALURU: The long wait for ministerial aspirants could end soon as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday admitted the need for a reshuffle and that he would meet top Congress leaders in Delhi within a couple of days.
The CM, who had postponed the revamp citing one reason or the other, including BBMP polls, told reporters that he would discuss the vexed issue with the high command soon after the end of Dasara festivities later this month. “I will tell you (media) before I leave for Delhi,” he added. The issue has been hanging fire much to the chagrin of aspirants as well as veteran Congress leaders who feel that the delay has resulted in a slack administration and collapse of the law and order situation. While some aspirants have made several trips to Delhi to lobby for a berth in the ministry, a few others went to the extent of seeking a change of leadership and installing a Dalit leader as CM during the recent visit of vice-president Rahul Gandhi.
They submitted a memorandum to Mr Gandhi and even cautioned him that the CM’s excessive importance to those from BCs could result in migration of Dalit voters to other parties. Similarly, veterans including former CM S.M. Krishna and former Union minister M.V. Rajashekharan conveyed to the high command that undue importance to AHINDA bloc at the expense of those belonging to other communities could hurt party’s prospects in polls in 2018.
