Dissent may delay Cabinet expansion

The Cabinet expansion of the JD(S)-Congress coalition government is likely to be deferred by a few more months with dissident activities in the Congress threatening to escalate.

The party leadership, which is closely watching the rebellion of the Jarkiholi brothers, is learnt to have decided to defer the expansion for now.

If the expansion takes place now, the situation would aggravate and dissident activities may escalate, said a Congress leader.

Though the Congress earlier planned to fill five vacant berths in the Kumaraswamy Cabinet and appoint some sitting MLAs as chairmen of boards and corporations, a threat by the Jarkiholi brothers has the party top brass worried.

Though the party high command dismissed the possibility of a threat to the stability of the government following the tussle between the Jarkiholi brothers and Belgaum Rural MLA Laxmi Hebbalkar, senior leaders were of the view that it was better to defer the expansion plan.

Though a section of the state Congress leaders say the that the Jarkiholi brothers were only trying to arm-twist the party for better portfolios, party leaders also fear that after the expansion of the Kumaraswamy-led ministry in the state, the disgruntled MLAs may come together to blackmail the party, said the leader.

Both Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president Dinesh Gundu Rao and
Water Resources Minister D K Shivakumar briefed the party top brass, including Karnataka incharge General Secretary K C Venugopal, and Congress treasurer Ahmed Patil last week.

Though Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy had earlier requested the All India Congress Committeed president Rahul Gandhi to finalise the names to be inducted into the ministry to end the dissent in the party, now the chief minister too is on the backfoot fearing an escalation of rebellion in the Congress party, said the leader.