Karnataka Cabinet Expanded, 24 Ministers Sworn In
The Karnataka government has the capacity to accommodate 34 ministers, out of which ten, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar, were sworn in on May 20. Today, an additional 24 ministers took their oath, expanding the cabinet of Chief Minister Siddaraiah one week after the Congress party assumed power in Karnataka. Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot administered the oath of office and secrecy to the newly appointed ministers.
List Of New Cabinet Ministers
Among the newly sworn-in ministers are MLAs HK Patil, Krishna Byregowda, N Cheluvarayaswamy, K Venkatesh, HC Mahadevappa, Congress working president Eshwar Khandre, and former state Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao. Other ministers on the list include Kyathasandra N Rajanna, Sharanabasappa Darshanapur, Shivanand Patil, Ramappa Balappa Timmapur, SS Mallikarjun, Shivaraj Sangappa Tangadagi, Sharanaprakash Rudrappa Patil, Mankal Vaidya, Laxmi Hebbalkar, Rahim Khan, D Sudhakar, Santosh Lad, NS Boseraju, Suresha BS, Madhu Bangarappa, MC Sudhakar, and B Nagendra.
According to Congress sources, Lakshmi Hebbalkar, Madhu Bangarappa, D Sudhakar, Cheluvaraya Swami, Mankul Vaidya, and MC Sudhakar have close ties to Mr. Shivakumar. The Congress’ list of ministers includes six Lingayats and four Vokkaligas. Additionally, three MLAs belong to Scheduled Castes, two to Scheduled Tribes, and five to Other Backward Communities such as Kuruba, Raju, Maratha, Ediga, and Mogaveera. The inclusion of Dinesh Gundu Rao represents the Brahmin community in the cabinet.
Regional Balancing
The ministers are distributed among different regions of Karnataka as follows: seven each from Old Mysuru and Kalyana Karnataka regions, six from Kittur Karnataka region, and two from central Karnataka.
Congress President’s Approval
The final list of ministers was approved by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has ensured representation based on caste and region, respecting both senior and junior MLAs, as stated in an official statement. The statement also mentions that the cabinet will include eight Lingayats, representing various sub-sects of the community, and five Vokkaligas, including Mr. Shivakumar. Additionally, nine ministers will be from Scheduled Castes.
Portfolios Will Be Assigned Later
The allocation of portfolios to the ministers has not been announced yet, but State Minister KH Muniyappa stated that the portfolios will be disclosed by Saturday evening. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Mr. Shivakumar have been in Delhi for the past three days, engaging in discussions with party leaders. The list of 24 MLAs was finalized after extensive deliberations between Siddaramaiah, Mr. Shivakumar, and senior central leaders, including AICC general secretaries KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala. The final approval for the list was given by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi.
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