Congress huddle in Delhi to finalise Karnataka Cabinet portfolios

Congress central leadership held a crucial meeting in New Delhi to finalise portfolio allocations for 20 new ministers in the Karnataka Cabinet. The official list is expected to be announced within the next 24 hours after the high-level meet.

A week after the expansion of the Karnataka Cabinet, central Congress leadership held a crucial meeting in New Delhi on Tuesday to finalise portfolio allocations for the newly inducted ministers, sources said.

According to sources, the agenda of the meeting centred on portfolio distribution following the recent induction of new ministers into the Karnataka Cabinet. Sources said that the official allocation of portfolios is expected to be announced within the next 24 hours.

As per sources, the discussion took place inside the chamber of the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha in Parliament. It was attended by LoP Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and party General Secretary (Organization) KC Venugopal. AICC In-charge of Karnataka Randeep Singh Surjewala was also present at the deliberations.

Cabinet Expansion Details

On August 3, the Congress high command approved the expansion of the Karnataka Cabinet, clearing the names of 20 ministers, including one woman, Gayathri Shanthegowda. The expanded ministry includes 12 new faces, while eight incumbent ministers have been retained. The oath-taking ceremony took place at Lok Bhavan in Bengaluru after Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot approved the Cabinet expansion. The state Cabinet increased the size of the ministry to the full limit of 34, including the Chief Minister.

Among those sworn in were P M Narendraswamy, Shivaraj Tangadagi, Rudrappa Lamani, K S Basavanthappa, B Nagendra, T Raghumoorthy, B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, Rizwan Arshad, Santosh Lad, Madhu Bangarappa, Putturangashetty, S S Mallikarjun, Ajay Singh, N Chaluvaraya Swamy, K M Shivalinge Gowda, H C Balakrishna, Gayathri Shanthegowda, Basavaraj Rayareddi, Vijayanand Kashappanavar and Laxman Savadi. Among the approved names, Gayathri Shanthegowda is the only woman minister.

The list also includes several new entrants to the cabinet, including PM Narendraswamy, K S Basavanthappa, T Raghumoorthy, Putturangashetty, Ajay Singh, and Gayathri Shanthegowda, while several former ministers are making a return to the Council of Ministers.

Other Key Appointments

The Congress high command also approved appointments to key positions in the Karnataka Legislature. G S Patil has been cleared for the post of Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, A S Ponnanna for Deputy Speaker, Saleem Ahmed for Chairperson of the Legislative Council, and Umashree for Deputy Chairperson of the Legislative Council. (ANI)

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