Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa is all set to expand his Cabinet on Tuesday. He made the announcement on Saturday after holding discussions with BJP national president Amit Shah, who is learnt to have approved a list of legislators to be given ministerial berths.
A BJP Legislature Party meeting will be held at the Vidhana Soudha on Tuesday morning. Post noon on the same day, anywhere between a dozen to 18 legislators are expected to be sworn in as Ministers at the Raj Bhavan.
Mr. Yediyurappa camped in New Delhi on Friday and Saturday and obtained clearance for Cabinet expansion. Indications are that the party will induct 16-18 members into the Cabinet in the first round and keep a few posts vacant to accommodate Congress and JD(S) rebels, now disqualified, later.
The party is expected to do a balancing act by giving representation to dominant communities, regional aspirations, experienced legislators, and some young faces.
Though Mr. Yediyurappa took oath as Chief Minister on July 26, he has remained in a one-man Cabinet for over 20 days. The Congress and the JD(S) have constantly taunted him over this and accused him of being unable to manage the situation on his own amid devastating floods in the State.
Though Mr. Yediyurappa had visited Delhi earlier in the hope of getting approval for Cabinet expansion, he had to return empty-handed as the flood situation aggravated even as central BJP leaders too were busy following the death of veteran leader Sushma Swaraj.
On Friday, the Chief Minister also called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and various other Union Ministers to seek aid from the Centre for flood relief and to expedite development projects in the State.
