A week after assuming power in Karnataka, the newly elected Siddaramaiah-led Congress government on Saturday inducted 24 ministers in the cabinet. The list of cabinet ministers as accessed by The New Indian, shows that DK Shivakumar’s Vokkaliga men have stolen the spotlight, while Muslim community have been given only two berths against the demand of five from minority leaders.
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However, former Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and Deputy Chief Minister Laxman Savadi, who switched allegiance from the BJP to join the Congress and played a crucial role in influencing the Lingayat vote bank, have been overlooked and denied ministerial berths.
The document accessed by The New Indian reveals the caste-based division of the cabinet berths in the new Congress government. Despite Muslims voting in droves to secure Congress’ decisive victory against the ruling BJP, their demand for five significant berths has gone unmet, as per the document.
Instead, Deputy CM DK Shivakumar’s loyalists from the Vokkaliga community dominate the distribution of power. Both Lingayats and Vokkaligas scored four seats each, Notably, former party president Dinesh Gundu Rao secured a spot as the Brahmin face at Number 8.
Only one seat has been allocated to the backward caste Kuruba, to which the CM himself belongs.
The Congress government in Karnataka completed the process of cabinet expansion, finalizing the names for 24 cabinets on Friday.
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The Muslim community secures two berths with B.Z. Zameer Ahmad Khan and Rahim Khan as their representatives. Making history, U.T. Khader becomes the first Muslim to hold the esteemed position of Speaker in the state Assembly.
Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar took the oath as the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, accompanied by eight cabinet ministers, on May 20. The initial plan to induct approximately 28 legislators into the Cabinet was revised by the Congress high command, approving a smaller list of eight ministers instead.
The oath-taking ceremony is taking place at the Raj Bhavan in Bengaluru.