Amid hard bargaining by the rival camps for plum portfolios, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has finalised the list of portfolios to be allocated to the team of Ministers in the Jagadish Shettar government.
The Ministers, who were sworn in on Thursday, will get the portfolios on Sunday when the list will be sent to the Governor for approval and for issuing a notification.
Mr. Shettar and Deputy Chief Minister R. Ashok, who had been to New Delhi on Saturday night are learnt to have got the clearance from the party’s central leadership for the list.
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Deputy Chief Minister K.S. Eshwarappa is tipped to get Revenue portfolio.
The party is learnt to have decided to allow the Ministers who have continued from previous dispensation to keep their old portfolios till the completion of the legislature session. Only the portfolios which were with the former Chief Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda would be allocated among the new Ministers, for now.
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According to sources in the BJP, the party has taken such a decision in view of the legislature session scheduled to commence from July 19.
“Many of the Ministers who have continued from the previous dispensation are holding prominent portfolios. It would be difficult for the Ministers to quickly get a grip over new departments and reply effectively in the legislature session if these portfolios were reallocated now,” the sources said.
However, the additional portfolios being held by the Ministers in the previous government had been taken away, the sources said. Hence, the party has chosen from among the 22 portfolios held by Mr. Gowda to be given to the 12 new Ministers.
“We will effect a reshuffle of portfolios after the legislature session when efforts will be made to strike a balance between the new and old Ministers in terms of portfolios,” the sources noted.
Plum portfolios unlikely
This would mean that a majority of the newly inducted Ministers are unlikely to get plum portfolios which are with the old Ministers.
It may be noted that 21 Ministers who were part of the previous dispensation are part of the new government as well.
Meanwhile, the government on Saturday issued a notification appointing Ministers as in-charge of various districts.
Consultations
Earlier in the day, the party leaders held several rounds of consultations to bring about consensus among the two rival groups on portfolios.
After the party core committee tried to clear the decks for the portfolio allocation late on Friday night through a marathon discussion, the top leaders held two rounds of consultations on Saturday.