BJP's victory revives hopes of ministerial aspirants

The BJP’s victory in the bypolls has revived dreams of ministerial aspirants in Kalyana Karnataka (KK) region.

Of 40 segments in the region, the saffron party won 15 seats in the May 2018 Assembly polls. The party also bagged Chincholi segment in the bypoll in May this
year. With the victory of Anand Singh from Vijayanagar
Assembly constituency, the number of BJP legislators is now 18.

The party has five each legislators in Kalaburagi and Ballari districts, three in Koppal district, one in Bidar and two each in Raichur and Yadgir districts.

In the region, the Congress has 19 seats, while the JD(S) four.

Prabhu Chauhan from Bidar district’s Aurad constituency is the lone face in the B S Yediyurappa cabinet. Five other districts, including Ballari that was a power centre in the previous BJP government, lack representation.

Dattatreya Patil Revoor (Gulbarga Dakshin), Rajkumar Telkur (Sedam), both from Kalaburagi district, Rajugouda (Shorapur) in Yadgir district and Shivanagouda Naik (Deodurg) in Raichur district are ministerial aspirants.

Former MLC Shashil G Namoshi demanded a berth for Kalaburagi district.

“Kalaburagi needs representation to supervise developmental works under Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board,” he told DH.

A few BJP leaders are confident that about two legislators would be made ministers. Singh’s entry into the cabinet looks mostly certain.

Nine legislators from the region, three each from Bidar and Vijayapura districts and one each from Kalaburagi, Ballari and Raichur districts, were ministers in the HD Kumaraswamy led Congress-JD(S) coalition government.