Cabinet expansion after Gujarat polls, says Bommai

Hassan

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has said the Cabinet expansion will be taken up as per the advice of the BJP high command after the Gujarat elections.

The Chief Minister told presspersons in Shivamogga on Friday that he would meet the party high command after the Gujarat elections on the issue of Cabinet expansion. The Chief Minister was in Shivamogga to inaugurate a training programme organised for BJP workers.

There was speculation that the Chief Minister will leave for Delhi on November 29 and discussion on the Cabinet expansion was on the cards. Now plans have been pushed further, with Gujarat elections slated for December 1 and 5, and counting to be taken up on December 8.

With the elections in Karnataka slated in 2023, there is pressure on the Chief Minister to expand the Cabinet before it is too late. There has been speculation on whether only six vacant posts will be filled or if there will be a rejig by dropping a few and inducting new faces.

Speaking on other issues, the Chief Minister said the government had taken the issue of leaf spot disease affecting areca plantations seriously. A team of experts from the Central government had visited the plantations. Similarly, experts from State universities also visited the plantations. “The experts have to come up with a solution for the disease. I am coming to Shivamogga again on Sunday. We will discuss the issue again with officers and experts,” he said.

Further, he said the government would also resolve the issue related to the alternative land granted to people displaced owing to the Sharavati project. “Congress leaders, who should have resolved the issue long back, are now taking out protest marches. But we will resolve the issue,” he said.