Karnataka Cabinet: To quell rebellion, Cong likely to upgrade chairman posts to cabinet rank

The Congress is looking at ways to quell dissidence within the party ahead of the Cabinet expansion to take place today. Those who would miss the ministry bus would be accommodated as chairpersons of boards and corporations. The party is also likely to elevate these positions to that of Cabinet ranks.

A decision to this effect would be taken after the Coordination Committee headed by former chief minister, Siddaramaiah meets following the expansion of the Cabinet. Apart from Siddaramaiah, H D Kumaraswamy, Dr. G Parameshwar, K C Venugopal and Danish Ali are members of this committee.

The committee was formed for the smooth functioning of the government. The committee has been vested with immense powers which also includes overseeing major decisions to be taken by the government.

The decision to upgrade the posts of chairpersons to Cabinet ranks was taken in a bid to pacify those who miss out becoming ministers. The Congress got 22 ministerial berths in the coalition which includes the post of deputy CM. The JD(S) on the other hand got 12 berths including the post of chief minister.