Bengaluru: Amid reports that a cabinet expansion or reshuffle is on the cards in a bid to save the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in Karnataka, Venugopal will hold a meeting with Congress ministers in the coalition government and will also take part in the CLP meeting scheduled in the evening.
Venugopal, who reached the city on late Tuesday night, will meet Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, CLP leader and Coordination Committee chief Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara and Pradesh Congress chief Dinesh Gundu Rao.
The coalition government in the southern state has been fragile since its inception with reports of its collapse surfacing every then and now. Venugopal's visit to the city gains significance as the coalition leaders are planning for an expansion or a reshuffle of the Kumaraswamy cabinet, aimed at saving the government.
While Siddaramaiah on Tuesday had said that it would be an expansion to fill three vacant posts, there are also reports quoting top sources in the government that some ministers may be asked to step down to make way for disgruntled legislators.
Out of 34 cabinet ministers, the Congress and the JD(S) have shared 22 and 12, respectively. Currently, three posts are vacant, two from the JD(S) and one from the Congress. Even as coalition leaders, including the chief minister, struggled to save the government, ministerial aspirants started lobbying on Tuesday. Many Congress legislators have expressed strong reservation against priority being given to the disgruntled, sidelining loyalists.
With the growing number of aspirants and fewer posts in hand, it remains to be seen how Venugopal and Congress leaders manage the situation. In the meeting, Venugopal and the state party leadership may ask a few ministers to make way for others. However, a section of party leaders believes that a cabinet expansion may be suitable at this moment, as any attempt for reshuffle may further worsen the situation.
Amid simmering discontent within the Congress, the coalition leaders fear the BJP, spurred by the Lok Sabha poll outcome in which it bagged 25 of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in the
state, may poach some MLAs. Coalition partners Congress and JD(S) managed to win one seat each in the Lok Sabha polls.
Rebel Congress MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi's visit to senior BJP leader S M Krishna's residence here in the presence of party state chief B S Yeddyurappa on Sunday has fuelled the speculation.
The meeting has started at Kumarakrama guest house in Bengaluru.
CM Kumaraswamy, DCM Dr G. Parameshwar, Former CM Siddaramaiah, KPCC President Dinesh Gundurao, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Shivakumar, M.B. Patil, state Congress supervisor K. C. Venugopala has participated in the meeting.
More updates are awaited.
