Cong MLAs plan to bunk Belagavi session?

Over a dozen Congress legislators are reportedly planning to bunk the upcoming winter session of the legislature in Belagavi to mount pressure on expansion of the Cabinet, and as a sign of protest against the way the Congress-JD(S) coalition functioned.

Legislators K Sudhakar (Chikkaballapur), S T Somashekhar (Yeshwanthpur), M T B Nagaraju (Hoskote), among others, have publicly frowned that development had taken a hit under Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy’s administration. Other legislators such as R Roshan Baig (Shivajinagar), P T Parameshwar Naik (Hadagali), B C Patil (Hirekerur), M Krishnappa (Vijayanagar), among others, have been sulking for being “sidelined.”

It is said that all these legislators, about 16 of them, contacted each other to discuss the possibility of skipping the Belagavi session, which will be the first winter session of the legislature for the Congress-JD(S) coalition.

Late on Friday evening, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Siddaramaiah is said to have caught whiff of this and asked the legislators not to skip the session.

The state Congress leadership has requested the high command to permit expanding the Cabinet, because ministerial aspirants are mounting pressure. Out of 34 Cabinet berths, the Congress has six vacant from its quota of 22, whereas the JD(S) can fill up two out of 12.

However, Congress president Rahul Gandhi, who has to given the green signal for the Cabinet expansion, is busy with the elections in other states.