President of the State unit of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Prahlad Joshi said in Udupi on Monday that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah should explain the reasons behind inducting D.K. Shivakumar and Roshan Baig in his Cabinet.
Speaking to presspersons here, Mr. Joshi said Mr. Siddaramaiah had taken the stand that persons facing charges would not be included in his Cabinet. But he had compromised on this just to remain as Chief Minister. Mr. Shivakumar and Mr. Baig had been inducted as Ministers under pressure from the AICC Vice President Rahul Gandhi, he alleged.
To a question, Mr. Joshi said the Central leadership of the BJP had taken the stand that the former Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa should step down because of the Lokayukta charges levelled against him. It was not right to hold positions as Ministers when persons were facing serious charges, Mr. Joshi said.
The BJP Yuva Morcha activists took out a protest on Monday in Mangalore against the inclusion of Mr. Shivakumar and Mr. Baig in the State cabinet. The protest was a part of the State-wide demonstration by the BJP.
The BJP Yuva Morcha activists said Siddaramaiah, who claimed of having Ministers with a clean record, now had Mr. Shivakumar and Mr. Baig, who were accused of corruption. The demonstration was held before the office of the Deputy Commissioner.
