Outreach, another Delhi trip as Shivakumar awaits OK for new portfolios

Chief Minister D K Shivakumar has continued his outreach efforts to Congress legislators who did not receive Cabinet positions when 19 new Karnataka ministers were sworn in on August 3. On Sunday, Shivakumar visited former minister Dinesh Gundu Rao’s home, accompanied by ministers Priyank Kharge and Ajay Singh. Rao, who was previously the health minister under Siddaramaiah, was dropped from the Cabinet when Shivakumar formed his new government.

Several senior legislators, including M Krishnappa and H K Patil, have also expressed reservations about their exclusion from the Cabinet list. Rao spoke to reporters, stating that he and the legislators are loyal to the party and that their meeting was cordial. There are rumors that the Cabinet may induct some additional legislators, but further decisions are expected after Shivakumar meets with the party's national leadership.

After the oath-taking ceremony of the new ministers, discontent among Congress legislators emerged, leading to Yashwant reagouda Patil and Belur Gopalkrishna threatening to resign as MLAs. However, they were eventually persuaded to withdraw their decision. The Congress leadership also sent Randeep Singh Surjewala, the AICC general secretary for the state, to Bengaluru to meet unhappy senior legislators.

While some have softened their stance, Krishnappa, whose son Priyakrishna is also an MLA, has held firm against the idea of receiving a Cabinet berth.