In what could be perceived as a virtual refusal to create the post of Deputy Chief Minister, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said here on Thursday that only the remaining four Cabinet slots would be filled after the byelection results are announced.
“There will be no reshuffle of the Cabinet,” he told The Hindu.
Only induction to fill the four vacant berths would take place and nothing else, he affirmed.
On the demand for a Deputy Chief Minister’s post, he said he would consult the party high command at the appropriate time. But, the Chief Minister did not set any timeline for such a consultation.
According to Mr. Siddaramaiah, the issue of Deputy Chief Minister would not figure in discussions at the Congress coordination committee meeting scheduled here for August 26. AICC general secretary in charge of Karnataka, Digivijay Singh, is expected to attend the meeting.
The Chief Minister’s “no” to Cabinet reshuffle is also expected to put a lid on the demand by a section in the Congress to drop some Ministers on grounds of inefficiency.
However, Mr. Siddaramaiah said there was no difference of opinion between him and the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president G. Parameshwara.
He further added that he would discuss with Assembly Speaker Kagodu Thimmappa on why the latter had said there was no transparency in the functioning of the State government. “He must have had no proper information,” he added.
