Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai set to induct 22 members into cabinet today

NEW DELHI/BENGALURU: After three days of hectic consultations with central party leaders, Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai is set to induct 22-24 members into his cabinet here on Wednesday, but question mark hangs over having deputy CMs in the team.
Even as suspense continued over the names of candidates, a communication from the chief secretary’s office to Raj Bhavan said the oath-taking ceremony was scheduled for 2.15pm.
Bommai told reporters in Delhi that the cabinet will be expanded in two phases. He said there were “detailed discussions on two candidates” and whether to have deputy CMs though such a move looks inevitable given the current political climate.
The party will communicate its decision on the two candidates and deputy CMs by Wednesday morning. Ministers have been chosen keeping in mind the 2023 assembly elections.
The CM said BS Yediyurappa is likely to hold discussions with party national president JP Nadda on cabinet expansion on Wedneday. Bommai will arrive in Bengaluru on an early-morning flight on Wednesday, making his stay in Delhi for cabinet talks longer than expected.
Bommai took oath as chief minister on July 28 and since then, he has spent more time in Delhi than in Bengaluru. On Monday night, Bommai held detailed discussions with Nadda for close to an hour. Bommai said he had submitted “2-3 draft lists” and the party chief would finalise the names. On Tuesday, the CM is learned to have met Nadda thrice, going over the permutations and combinations. He finally secured the party chief ’s nod for the list of ministers late Tuesday night.
Bommai had said on Monday the focus of the expansion would be on parity of regional representation and social justice. The main issue, say observers, is to balance the aspirations of the 8-10 new entrants and the old guard.
The opposition has continued to pile pressure on Bommai, ridiculing his two trips to Delhi. “When BJP and the new CM are claiming everything is fine, why is he making so many trips to Delhi? This, at a time when the state is facing a Covid-19 crisis and floods,” said Karnataka Congress working president Eshwar Khandre.