Karnataka cabinet troubles continue; CM Yediyurappa reshuffles portfolios within 24 hrs

In yet another reshuffle, Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa on Friday, reshuffled his cabinet, reorganising some of the portfolios allocated to the seven newly inducted ministers. After four cabinet ministers - JC Madhuswamy, MTB Nagaraja, K Sudhakar and K Gopalaiah complained of the reshuffled portfolios. Apart from JC Madhuswamy, the other three ministers recently jumped ship from Congress and JDS respectively - propping up the Yediyurappa government.

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Key reshuffles in Karnataka cabinet

As per the official government notification:

• BS Yediyurappa: The Chief Minister has kept key portfolios - the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR), Cabinet Affairs, Finance, Bangalore Development, Energy, Intelligence from Home Department, Infrastructure Development and all other unallocated portfolios - with himself.
• JC Madhuswamy: The senior BJP leader was divested of Law, Parliamentary Affairs, Legislation and Minor Irrigation portfolios and has been allocated Medical education from Health dept and Haj and Wakf department. Madhuswamy a key minister who used to put up a strong defence of the government in the Assembly, complained after being given the Kannada and Culture department before he was given additionally the Haj and Wakf department.
• Aravind Limbavalli: The newly inducted minister- a long time BJP leader who was given the Forest Department, has additionally been given the Kannada and Culture department
• MTB Nagaraj: The newly inducted minister who is a Congress-turned-BJP MLA who was given Excise Ministry, has now been given Municipal administration department, Sugarcane Development and Directorate of sugar from Industries and Commerce Department
• Gopalaiah: The JDS-turned-BJP MLA who divested of the Food, Civil Supplies and Consumers Affairs Department has been made Excise Minister
• R Shankar: The newly inducted independent-turned-BJP MLA who was given the Municipal Administration and Sericulture portfolio, has now been divested of Municipal administration and given Horticulture Department instead
• Narayana Gowda: The JDS-turned-BJP MLA was initially given Youth Empowerment, Sports, Haj and Wakf Departments, while Municipal Administration, Horticulture and Sericulture departments have been taken back from him. Now, Youth Empowerment and Sports has been retained with Yediyurappa parting with Planning, Programme Monitoring Statistics from his portfolio to Gowda.

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Karnataka cabinet trouble

The four other new inductees' portfolios include - Umesh Katti (Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs), S Angara (Fisheries, Ports and Inland Transport), Murugesh Nirani (Mines and Geology), C P Yogeshwar (Minor Irrigation department). After waiting for a year, Karnataka CM Yediyurappa inducted even legislators namely - MTB Nagaraj, R Shankar, CP Yogeshwar, Umesh Katti, Arvind Limbavali, Murugesh Nirani, S Angara into his cabinet on January 13. Senior BJP ministers like Anand Singh, CC Patil, Kota Srinivas Poojari, Prabhu Chauhan, A Shivaram Hebbar too had to let go of several key ministries to the new inductees leading to discontent in the Karnataka BJP camp with BJP leader Basanagouda R Patil claiming that only those who blackmailed the CM "with a CD" were inducted. Others who expressed their grievances openly are - Mysore MLA Ramadoss, chief whip in Karnataka Assembly Sunil Kumar Karkala, Ron MLA Kalakappa Bandi and MLA from Belgaum (South) Abhay Patil. Yediyurappa formed his government on August 26 with the help of 16 rebels who switched from Congress & JDS. 

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