Amid growing pressure from newly inducted ministers for plum ministries, Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Saturday said the portfolio allocation will be done on February 10.
“Everything is ready but since today (Saturday) is a holiday, we will allot portfolios on Monday morning,” he said. While rewarding with Cabinet berth 10 defectors who helped the BJP bring down the Congress-JD(S) coalition and come to power, Mr. Yediyurappa on Thursday announced that the portfolios will be allotted before Saturday.
He also ruled out going to Delhi to decide filling the remaining six vacant ministerial posts. “At present I am not going but the portfolio distribution will happen on Monday,” Mr. Yediyurappa told reporters here on Saturday.
According to BJP sources, the Chief Minister apparently deferred the portfolio allocation allegedly due to pressure from Gokak MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi, who has been insisting on the Water Resource Department portfolio, while the party leadership wanted to give him the portfolio of Public Works Department.
Mr. Jarkiholi had a detailed discussion at Mr. Yediyurappa’s house till the early hours of Saturday and left the place displeased, the sources claimed. The Cabinet expansion on Thursday led to discontent among a section of “native” BJP leaders who were left out of the exercise as the party sought to contain dissidence in the face of intense lobbying for berths by several contenders.
The expansion has taken the strength of the Cabinet to 28, with six vacancies now. In the first expansion last August, 17 ministers were inducted.
