DKS Cabinet likely to be finalised, but Karnataka delay among rarest in history
Nearly two months after DK Shivakumar took the oath as Karnataka Chief Minister on June 3, the full expansion of his Council of Ministers remains
Nearly two months after DK Shivakumar took the oath as Karnataka Chief Minister on June 3, the full expansion of his Council of Ministers remains pending, with reports indicating the list could be finalised over the weekend, around August 2, and swearing-in possibly early next week. DKS and other state leaders met the Congress top leadership at party president Mallikarjun Kharge's residence in New Delhi on Thursday to discuss the expansion of the Cabinet. Read Full Story Shivakumar was sworn in at Lok Bhavan along with Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara and 12 other ministers, a first batch of 13 ministers in total with him, for a 14-member team initially. Karnataka's constitutional limit is 34 ministers including the CM, so roughly 20 berths remain vacant. Portfolio allocation for the first group happened quickly, but further expansion has been delayed by high-command consultations in Delhi over regional, caste, community, gender and generational balance, competing factional lists (involving Shivakumar and predecessor Siddaramaiah), and other political priorities.
By July 31, this amounts to about 58 days since the initial swearing-in. Recent reports have pointed to finalisation of names by around August 2, with induction targeted for August 3 or shortly after, ahead of the monsoon session, which begins on August 13. This is longer than some recent Karnataka precedents but does not set a new national record for the time a state government has operated with a minimal or incomplete cabinet after a CM's induction. Indian states have seen several extended periods of limited cabinets, often one- or two-member core teams handling all departments, while leadership negotiated equations, high-command clearances, or other factors. OTHER STATES HAVE SEEN A LONGER DELAY IN CABINET APPOINTMENT One of the longest such instances in recent years came in Telangana, where K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) was sworn in as Chief Minister on December 13, 2018, along with only one other minister, Mohammed Mahmood Ali. The council remained a two-member affair for over two months before 10 more ministers were inducted on February 19, 2019, creating a gap of around 66–68 days.
The delay, attributed to administrative reorganisation and political considerations, also drew criticism from the Opposition over governance. Maharashtra has also witnessed similar delays on multiple occasions. After the Shiv Sena split in 2022, Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis ran the government as the only two members of the council for nearly 40 days before the cabinet was expanded on August 9. Three years earlier, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government functioned with just a seven-member cabinet for about 40 days after taking office in November 2019, as alliance partners negotiated the distribution of portfolios. Karnataka itself has experienced a comparable, though shorter, phase. After the collapse of the JD(S)-Congress coalition in 2019, BS Yediyurappa was sworn in as Chief Minister on July 26 and headed a one-man cabinet for 25 days before inducting 17 ministers on August 20. During this period, he even chaired cabinet meetings alone while the BJP worked through caste and regional representation and awaited the party high command's approval.
The BriefWire