No talks held with top brass on Cabinet rejig: CM Bommai

The long-pending Cabinet rejig exercise in Karnataka is depends on the outcome of the Karnataka High Court’s verdict on holding the Zilla Panchayat elections.

Sources in the BJP said, “If the court orders for immediate elections, the Cabinet rejig will be delayed. Otherwise, it may happen soon”.

The High Court is expected to pronounce its verdict on a petition holding Zilla Panchayat polls soon.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who was here to meet party top brass, told reporters that he has not discussed the Cabinet rejig during his meeting with top leaders.

The sources said Bommai spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the phone on finalising the party’s candidates for the forthcoming Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council elections.

They said the chief minister also met Karnataka in-charge and BJP general secretary Arun Singh and their discussion was only limited to the selection of the candidates for the elections.

Bommai said, “I had to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah. But that couldn’t happen. We spoke over the phone and discussed Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council elections. I have given details about the list of the candidates. The Home minister asked me to discuss the same with our in-charge Arun Singh.”

He said the party leaders will finalise the list of candidates in a day or two.

To a question on Cabinet rejig, he said, “ I am waiting for the party’s top leaders’ decision. But the Supreme Court has asked us to hold BBMP elections in two months. Other elections are also coming. Taking into all these issues, we will make a decision.”

Sources close to the chief minister told DH that he is keen on finalising the candidates before he departs for Davos on Sunday morning to attend the World Economic Forum meeting.

RS, MLC poll candidates

The BJP is likely to renominate Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the sitting Rajya Sabha member K C Ramamurthy as candidates for the Rajya Sabha election.

The party is likely to field hotelier Prakash Shetty as its third candidate for the Rajya Sabha election.

The last date for filing nominations for Council polls is May 24 and the nomination process for the Rajya Sabha seats end on May 31.

The elections to the Council will be held on June 3 and Rajya Sabha on June 10.

In the election for four Rajya Sabha seats, the BJP can will two seats comfortably while for the one seat, it is hoping to win with support from JD(S).

The state BJP unit has already recommended over a dozen names to the central election panel for the seven council seats, including B Y Vijayendra, state BJP vice-president and former chief minister B S Yediyurappa’s son.

Since the seven MLCs are elected by MLAs, the BJP, given its strength in Legislative Assembly, can win four seats, the Congress two and the JD(S) one.