JOIN USThe much-delayed expansion or reshuffle of the council of ministers may get prolonged again if Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi finalises his plan to visit to the State in the first week of October.
Sources in the ruling party said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is planning to put on hold the exercise to either to expand or reshuffle his Cabinet if Rahul's visit is finalised. This is because the chief minister wants to avoid any kind of dissident activities in the party during the party leader's visit. He had planned to complete the exercise by this month end.
Rahul is expected to visit some places in the State where farmers committed suicide recently on October 6 and 7. But nothing has been finalised yet, including the dates. There is a long list of ministerial aspirants in the party, and they have already started lobbying seeking a berth. Some of the aspirants are planning to go to Delhi on September 24 to meet the leaders.
Delhi visit
The sources said that a clear picture in this regard will emerge after Siddaramaiah's scheduled meeting with the Congress high command on September 25 in Delhi. He has kept both the options open – either to complete the exercise by this month end or postpone it. He will strictly go by the command's advice in this regard.
However, he would suggest to the high command to postpone the exercise for the time being if Rahul's visit is finalised, sources added.
The sources said the chief minister is in favour of only expansion of his 28-month-old council of ministers.
Currently there are four vacancies, and there are at least two dozen aspirants for them. But some senior leaders, including KPCC president G Parameshwara are for reshuffling. They want the removal of “non-performing” ministers.
Parameshwara, who is accompanying Siddaramaiah in his visit to Delhi, is also one of the ministerial aspirants and he recently stated that he was ready to take up any responsibility given by the party. He has been mounting pressure on the party to create a post of deputy chief minister for him. His term as the State Congress president is scheduled to end next month.
Parameshwara, on Monday, met former External affairs minister S M Krishna at the latter's residence. Later speaking to reporters, he said his supporters and followers had been demanding that he should be made a deputy chief minister. But it is the party high command which will take the decision in this regard, he added in reply to a question whether he was aspiring to become a deputy chief minister.
He said the Cabinet expansion is the prerogative of the chief minister. However, the practice is that the chief minister consults the State party president before taking up the exercise.
But he has not done it yet, he added.