Yediyurappa’s One-Man Karnataka Cabinet to Be Expanded on Tuesday

Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said in Bengaluru on Monday that his cabinet would be expanded on Tuesday, with 13 to 14 ministers likely to be sworn in. He told reporters that the ceremony would be held between 10:30 and 11:30 am, that he had written to the Governor about it, and that the Chief Secretary had been asked to make arrangements. A cabinet meeting would follow the expansion.

Weeks without ministers

Sworn in as Chief Minister on July 26, Yediyurappa won a confidence vote in the Assembly on July 29, but has run the government alone for more than 20 days. On Saturday, BJP national president Amit Shah cleared him to carry out the expansion on August 20.

He said the state leadership expected clear instructions from the party high command by Monday afternoon on who would be included, after his talks with Shah and other leaders in Delhi. Asked about the size of the first batch, he said the number might vary by “plus or minus one or two”.

Balancing act

Sources said the Chief Minister must strike a careful caste and regional balance because of the large number of aspirants. With the Supreme Court yet to rule on the 17 disqualified Congress-JD(S) MLAs, whose resignations helped the BJP take power, he is under no immediate pressure to make room for them.

The Congress and the JD(S) have attacked the BJP over the delay and questioned whether the government really existed. The Congress said Yediyurappa’s one-man administration “resembled President’s rule”.

Background

The 2018 assembly election left the BJP with 104 seats, the Congress with 78 and the JD(S) with 37. Yediyurappa resigned before a trust vote then, and H. D. Kumaraswamy of the JD(S) became Chief Minister with Congress support. That government fell in July 2019, after which Yediyurappa returned to the post.

See also: Janata Dal (Secular) and state assembly members.

Originally published on 19 August 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us