19 MLAs inducted into Karnataka Cabinet, lone woman pick left out
Nineteen Congress MLAs were sworn in as ministers in the DK Shivakumar-led Karnataka government on Monday, while the lone woman pick, Gayathri Shanthegowda, was absent
Nineteen Congress MLAs were sworn in as ministers in the DK Shivakumar-led Karnataka government on Monday, while the lone woman pick, Gayathri Shanthegowda, was absent from the swearing-in ceremony. Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot administered the oath of office and secrecy to the new ministers at a ceremony held at Lok Bhavan in Bengaluru, marking the first Cabinet expansion since Shivakumar took over as Chief Minister two months ago. Read Full Story Among those sworn in were N Chaluvarayaswamy, Basavaraj Rayareddi, Laxman Savadi, Madhu Bangarappa, SS Mallikarjun, B Nagendra, HC Balakrishna, KS Basavanthappa, Dr Ajay Singh, PM Narendraswamy, C Putturangashetty, T Raghumoorthy, Rizwan Arshad, Shivaraj Tangadagi, Rudrappa Lamani, BZ Zameer Ahmed Khan, Santosh Lad, KM Shivalinge Gowda and Vijayanand Kashappanavar. Gayathri Shanthegowda's name had figured in the Congress high command's approved list of 20 ministers, but she was not sworn in today.
Gayathri was recently declared elected to the Karnataka Legislative Council from the Chikkamagaluru Local Authorities' Constituency after the Supreme Court set aside BJP leader MK Pranesh's election to the House in December 2021. She is yet to formally become a member of the Karnataka Legislative Council. With the induction of 19 ministers, the Karnataka Cabinet remains one short of its sanctioned strength of 34, including the Chief Minister. Speaking after taking oath, newly inducted minister PM Narendraswamy said the party would work together to strengthen the Congress and return to power in the 2028 Assembly elections. "I am happy to take the oath as a minister. We will work together to strengthen the party and form the government in the 2028 elections.
At the same time, our dream is to see our leader Rahul Gandhi become the Prime Minister of the country in 2029," he said. Ahead of the Cabinet expansion, Chief Minister DK Shivakumar had appealed for patience among disappointed Congress legislators, saying it was impossible to accommodate everyone at once. "There are many MLAs. It is not possible to accommodate everyone. Earlier, I too missed out on a ministerial berth in Siddaramaiah's Cabinet. But didn't I become a minister later? Similarly, we will provide opportunities to everyone in the future," he had told reporters. His remarks came amid discontent within the Congress over the Cabinet expansion. Indi MLA Yashavantarayagouda V Patil resigned from his legislative post after failing to secure a ministerial berth, while his supporters staged protests outside the Vidhana Soudha.
The BriefWire