Within a day of Laxman Savadi, senior MLA and Congress leader, holding a press conference to declare that he will not accept a board or corporation nomination, Deputy Chief Minister and KPCC president D.K. Shivakumar rushed to Belagavi to meet the former Deputy Chief Minister.
Mr. Shivakumar landed in the airport in Sambra in a special flight. And, Ministers Satish Jarkiholi and Lakshmi Hebbalkar joined him for dinner with Mr. Savadi at his house in Sadashiv Nagar. The meeting went on for over three hours.
It is not clear what transpired in the meeting, but party sources say that Mr. Shivakumar assured Mr. Savadi of being made a Minister in the first Cabinet reshuffle.
“Mr. Shivakumar explained that none of the eight leaders who joined the Congress after quitting their parties has been inducted into the Cabinet. He also said that nine out of the 34 Ministers are Lingayat. He said that Mr. Savadi will be made a Minister in the first Cabinet reshuffle. He asked Mr. Savadi to involve himself actively in the party’s Lok Sabha campaign and that he will be given some party responsibility in Karnataka and Maharashtra,” a party functionary said.
Issues such as N. Boseraju being made a Minister despite him not being a member of either Houses of the Legislature and providing a suitable position to the former Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, who lost the Assembly polls, came up in the discussion, sources said.
Ms. Hebbalkar raised this issue and Mr. Shivakumar responded by saying that Mr. Shettar can be made a member of the Legislative Council and considered for the post of the Chairman of the Upper House.
A Congress leader said that AICC leaders had asked Mr. Shivakumar to meet the two senior Lingayat leaders from North Karnataka, following reports that their non-inclusion in the Ministry may have upset them.
Mr. Shivakumar told journalists in Belagavi on Wednesday that the Congress senior leadership is grateful to senior leaders Mr. Savadi and Mr. Shettar. “We recognise their services to the party. They will be recognised duly,” he said.
He clarified that none of the two leaders has sought to be included in the Cabinet. “I have been busy with the swearing-in of Ministers and the first Cabinet meeting. Hence, I could not meet them but I thank them for their efforts during campaigning. That is the reason behind the visit now,” he said.
