BSY swings into action to curtail dissident activities

Dissident activities seem to be on the rise in the Karnataka BJP unit with several disgruntled MLAs unsatisfied after cabinet expansion. To quell an internal rebellion and placate these MLAs, B.S. Yeddyurappa is offering plum Board and Corporation posts along with special grants to their districts.

Bengaluru (Karnataka): Aftermath of Cabinet expansion, dissident activities are simmering within in the State BJP, however the Chief Minister B.S.Yediyurappa is trying hard to placate disgruntled MLAs who left out from the Cabinet by offering plum Boards and Corporations posts besides assuring to release special grants to their Assembly constituencies.

Senior BJP legislators, Basanagowda Patil Yatnal, M.P. Renukacharaya, G.H. Thippareddy, Satish Reddy, A.S. Ramadas, Sunil Kumar, Abhay Patil, Aravind Bellad, H. Vishwanth, Siddu Savadi, Shivana Gowda Nayak, Rajugowda, Nehru Olekar, Appachu Ranjan and others have already expressed their anger for not inducting them into the Cabinet. Among disgruntled MLAs, apart from Basanagowda Patil and Vishwanth, it would not be difficult to the Chief Minister to placate others. The Chief Minister has assured to offer plum Board and Corporation posts and special grants to the constituencies to the MLAs who missed Cabinet berth.

Besides, the Chief Minister has also assured the disgruntled MLAs to sanction developmental works of them.

Even before the expansion of the Cabinet, the Chief Minister had appointed MLAs to the Boards and Corporation, somehow he has managed to contain dissident activities in the beginning. As a result, Cabinet aspirant MLAs have not raised any revolt against party leadership and accepted Board and Corporations.

Day by day, dissident activities losing its significance, however, senior legislators, H. Vishwanath and Basanagowda Patil had intensified their attack against the Chief Minister, it cannot be predicted at this movement about its impact on the party as well as the government.

Chief Minister has tried to placate disgruntled MLAs by taking them into confidence and he has entrusted responsibility to party state unit President, senior leaders and senior ministers to pacify the dissident MLAs. Both the Chief Minister and the party has taken utmost care to prevent further damage to the government from dissident MLAs.

Thirteen districts have no representation

Chief Minister has filled all post by keeping one post vacant in the Cabinet. However, thirteen districts have unrepresented in BSY Cabinet. At the same time, Bengaluru Urban and Belagavi get a lion's share in the Cabinet.

In total 34 strength of the Cabinet, Chief Minister has inducted 33 ministers, out of 31 districts, 13 districts have unrepresented in the Cabinet.

Bengaluru Urban district gets 8 ministers in the Cabinet, which has 28 Assembly constituencies. (Suresh Kumar, R. Ashok, Ashwathnarayana, V. Somanna, Aravinda Limbavali, Byrati Basavaraj, MTB Nagaraj, S.T. Somashekar,) Like Belagavi gets five ministers in BSY Cabinet which has 18 Assembly constituencies. (Laxman Savadi, Ramesh Jarakiholi, Shashikala Jolle, Srimanta Patil and Umesh Katti). Small districts like Haveri gets three ministers (Basavaraj Bommai, B.C. Patil and R. Shankar)

Bellary which plays an important role in installing the first-ever BJP government in 2008 has not got any representation during expansion. Though Social Welfare Minister B. Sreeramalu hailed from Bellary, he is representing Molakalmuru Assembly constituency of Chitradurga district.

Thirteen unrepresented districts are Mysuru, Chamarajanagara, Kodagu, Hassan, Kolara, Bellary, Davangere, Chikamagaluru, Yadgiri, Kalaburagi, Raichuru, Vijayapura and Koppal. Including the Chief Minister, Shivamogga gets two representations. Senior minister K.S. Eshwarappa is the in-charge minister of that district.

MLAs who defected from Congress and helped to install the BSY government made as ministers in the Cabinet, with this compulsion many districts have unrepresented in the Cabinet, says party leaders. However, they are not in a position to give satisfactory answers for why the party has given lion share to Bengaluru Urban and Belagavi districts which gets 8 and 5 ministers respectively.