CM’s breakfast meeting with Congress MLC B. K. Hariprasad gives rise to speculation about Cabinet reshuffle in Karnataka

One line of speculation is that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah asked B.K. Hariprasad to accept the post of Chairman of the Legislative Council once the party secures a majority after filling four vacant seats in the Upper House.

A breakfast meeting between Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Congress MLC B. K. Hariprasad on May 29 gave rise to speculation about a Cabinet reshuffle.

Mr. Siddaramaiah called on B. K. Hariprasad at the latter’s residence in Bengaluru.

Speaking to reporters, the Chief Minister said they discussed issues related to Mangaluru, which has been witnessing murders on communal lines. “There is a need for bringing harmony in Mangaluru, and there should be no enmity for any reason. No matter how influential are the perpetrators of communal riots, strict action will be taken as per the law. No one is above the law.”

The Chief Minister was accompanied by Housing Minister B.Z. Zameer Ahmed Khan and MLC Naseer Ahmed.

Mr. Hariprasad has been criticising the Chief Minister after being denied a Cabinet berth during the formation of the government in May 2023. The MLC has lashed out at Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for ‘denying justice to Dalits, minorities and a large sections of OBCs in the Karnataka government’ without citing his name directly, on several occasions.

Sources in the ruling party said that with the government completing two years in office, several senior legislators have been mounting pressure on the Chief Minister to reshuffle the Cabinet.

Deputy Chief Minister and KPCC chief D. K. Shivakumar has been reportedly opposing a Cabinet reshuffle till the ‘informal’ power sharing agreement is honoured and Mr. Siddaramaiah steps down from office after completing his two-and-a-half-year tenure in October 2025, party sources said.