After months of speculation, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has decided to expand his Cabinet by filling three vacancies on Friday, maintaining the caste balance.
With the Assembly elections scheduled to be held early next year, this appears to be the last Cabinet expansion/reshuffle of portfolios in the Congress-ruled State.
Though several party legislators lobbied with the high command for getting the Cabinet berths, sources in the State Secretariat confirmed that two members of the Upper House and one from Lower House would be inducted into the Council of Ministers.
H.M. Revanna, MLC, who belongs to the Kuruba community and a loyalist of the Chief Minister, is expected to get a place in the Ministry. He served as Textile Minister in the S.M. Krishna government during 1999-2004.
Legislator R.B. Thimmapur (Dalit) is another candidate expected to be sworn in as Minister. He too was Minister for Planning, Institutional Finance/Statistics in the S.M. Krishna government.
First-time MLA Geetha Mahadeva Prasad, wife of former Minister the late H.S. Mahadeva Prasad, would be the third legislator to be inducted. She belongs to the Lingayat community.
