Bengaluru: With three berths waiting to be filled-including the one which KPCC president Dr G. Parameshwar will have to vacate soon. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Dr Parameshwar were closeted for nearly three hours at a private hotel in the city on Sunday after they gave the slip to their personal staff. This has triggered intense speculation that the cabinet expansion may happen after the ongoing Legislature session concludes on Wednesday, with several hopefuls already in New Delhi lobbying for berths.
A senior Congress leader disclosed that Mr Siddaramaiah and Dr Parameshwar, soon after bidding farewell to President Pranab Mukherjee who was in the state on a visit, left in a car asking their staff to wait for them in their respective home-offices until they returned. “They left for a private hotel nearby as per plan. It is speculated that they might have discussed the filling of three vacant berths including that of home minister, which Dr Parameshwar will have to give up as per the diktat of the Congress high command. It is unclear if Mr Siddaramaiah is keen on appointing a new home minister or will retain the portfolio for the rest of his term,” the source explained.
CM to fill 3 vacancies soon?
It’s not only an expansion, there could even be a reshuffle of portfolios of a few ministers. “During preliminary talks of this kind, the two senior leaders might have arrived at an understanding on the caste equation to be adopted along with the policy they would put forth before central leaders at a later stage. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah might be looking at filling the three vacancies with a Lingayat, Kuruba and Dalit or Nayaka, so that he is able to strike the right caste balance.
“There is a possibility that they might have discussed accommodating senior leaders who have been left out for a long time,” the source claimed.
Rumours of a portfolio change come amidst reports that some ministers have not concentrated on their constituencies and may even lose their seats in the coming elections.
“The Chief Minister seems to have come up with a plan to assign relatively lightweight portfolios to such ministers and utilize them to campaign vigorously not only in their constituencies but also in their districts during next elections,” the source added.
