Who said there is cabinet expansion? asks Shettar

Large and Medium Industries Minister Jagadish Shettar said there are no talks of cabinet expansion or reshuffle of portfolios on in the Karnataka State cabinet.

Speaking to media persons here on Sunday, Shettar said “Who told you that there is a cabinet expansion or reshuffle. What is the source of this information as there are no such talks being held either in the party or in the government. This is all media’s creation,” he said.

When asked about several BJP MLAs (including rebel MLAs) and MLCs eyeing six vacant ministerial berths in the Yediyurappa led cabinet and ministers and elected representatives from Belagavi seeking plump posts, Shettar refused to comment instead saying that the media should tell the party who is seeking these posts.

On phone tapping

Shettar asked Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President D K Shivakumar to stop making false claims regarding phone tapping. “Phone tapping is a thing of the past; it was when the Congress and its supported governments were in power,” he said and added that Congress is making such statements to divert the attention from the main issue of riots.

The BJP leader warned Shivakumar against ‘intimidating’ Bengaluru police commissioner from doing his duty.

“Congress is in Catch-22 situation. To secure its vote base, none of the top Congress leaders, including Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, have condemned the Bengaluru riots so far, in spite of the house of their MLA being burnt,” he said.

Shettar sought Congress’s clarification on Chamrajpet MLA Zameer Ahmed Khan’s compensating police firing victims, who allegedly have links with the ‘anti-national’ Social Democratic Party of India. “There should be a limit to appeasement, it cannot be at the cost of the nation,” he said.