Coalition Ministry in Karnataka expanded,

The JD (S)-BJP coalition Ministry inKarnataka was expanded yesterday with the induction ofeight Ministers – four each from both the parties.
As expected Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy’s elderbrother H D Revanna and JD (S) Karnataka unitPresident M P Prakash were inducted into the coalitionMinistry along with partymen Zameer Ahmed Khan and H KKumaraswamy.
The BJP brought in S A Ravindranath, Shivananda Naik,Revu Naik Belamagi and Shashikant Akkappa into theMinistry.
The new Ministers were administered oath of office andsecrecy by Governor T N Chaturvedi during a simplefunction at the Banquet Hall of Vidhana Soudha, theState Secretariat. Though the strength of thecoalition Ministry went up to 30 after Wednesday’sexercise against the optimal strength of 34, no womanmember has made it to the Ministry yet.
Also, the expansion of the Ministry sparked offdiscontentment in the coalition partner BJP with atleast two aspirants coming out strongly against theparty leadership’s refusal to accommodate them.
Three-time BJP MLA H S Shankarlinge Gowda was almost in tears when he told television channels that hesuspected a political conspiracy to keep him out ofMinistry. He lashed out publicly at Deputy ChiefMinister B S Yediyurappa and BJP’s state unitPresident Sadananda Gowda for ignoring his claim to aministerial berth.
“I have been elected thrice times consecutively. Wheneven the first-time MLAs are being given ministerialberths, there is no reason why I should be denied”, hesaid displaying a sense of hurt.
BJP’s Karnataka unit President of SC and ST wingRajendra Verma too publicly expressed his anger overbeing left out of the Ministry and threatened toresign from his party post.Though there were several others in the BJP as well asJD (S), who were aspiring for ministerial berths,their reaction remained muted and their emotions did not come into the open.
But, Chief Minister Kumaraswamy dismissed thediscontentment triggered by the expansion of theMinistry as “normal”. He referred to the four mor evacancies in the Ministry and said steps will be takento assuage the hurt feelings of the legislators by not only filling up the remaining berths in the coalitionMinistry, but also setting into motion the process ofappointment of chairpersons to various state-run Boards and Corporation.
BJP’s state President Sadananda Gowda too said theparty leadership will take steps to mollify theministerial aspirants, who were dejected after failing to make it to the coalition Ministry.