Madhu Bangarappa gets Cabinet berth, leaving other aspirants disappointed
Madhu Bangarappa, Sorab MLA, who was Minister for School Education in the Siddaramaiah-led Cabinet, has been re-inducted into the Cabinet, leaving other aspirants from Shivamogga
Madhu Bangarappa, Sorab MLA, who was Minister for School Education in the Siddaramaiah-led Cabinet, has been re-inducted into the Cabinet, leaving other aspirants from Shivamogga district disappointed. Bangarappa, a two-time MLA from Sorab — a constituency nurtured and represented by his father, S. Bangarappa, former Chief Minister — also served as the Minister in-charge of Shivamogga district for three years. He was confident of retaining his Cabinet berth despite the change in the Chief Minister’s post. However, a section of party workers had favoured Belur Gopal Krishna, Sagar MLA. Several of them held public meetings and addressed the media, demanding a Cabinet berth for their leader.
Gopal Krishna, too, had openly declared himself a contender for the post and, at times, led a delegation of legislators to press the party high command for a Cabinet reshuffle. Protest in Sagar Speaking to the media in Bengaluru, he expressed disappointment and said he would resign as MLA and as chairman of the Karnataka State Forest Industries Corporation. His supporters staged a protest in Sagar, burning tyres and raising slogans against the Congress high command for ignoring their MLA in the Cabinet expansion. B.K. Sangameshwara, a four-time MLA from Bhadravathi, was also disappointed with the party’s decision. He said he had been a staunch and committed party worker and had not quit the party even when the BJP offered him a huge sum of money.
He alleged that the party leadership had cheated him. No competitor In Hassan, K.M. Shivalinge Gowda, a four-time MLA from Arasikere and the only ruling party MLA in the district, faced no competition for the berth. Mr. Shivalinge Gowda, known for his Assembly speeches that went viral on social media, was confident of a Cabinet berth, citing assurances from party leaders — including Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar and his predecessor, Siddaramaiah — given at the time he joined the party ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections. No representation In Chikkamagaluru, a district where all five Assembly constituencies are represented by Congress MLAs, the party high command had initially chosen Gayathri Shanthegowda for the Cabinet.
However, her name was removed from the list later in the day. Shanthegowda, who fought a legal battle to claim victory in the Legislative Council election held in December 2020, is yet to take the oath as a member of the Council. The Karnataka High Court, on July 31, declared her the winner of the Legislative Council election from the local authorities’ constituency of Chikkamagaluru, against M.K. Pranesh of the BJP.
The BriefWire