Fresh trouble in BJP over delay in Karnataka cabinet expansion

Upset over the "delay" in the expansion of the Karnataka Cabinet, a section of ruling Bharatiya Janata Party legislators on Wednesday threatened to take the issue to the party's central leadership if the exercise was not completed by Saturday.

Members of Legislative Assembly C T Ravi and M P Appachu Ranjan held a press conference, expressing their anger over the "delay".

The state BJP top brass has been talking about the proposed Cabinet expansion for a few months but have been postponing it for one reason or another. Meanwhile, the chief minister holds as many as 20 portfolios.

Ravi said senior party leaders had assured that the cabinet expansion would take place by June 16 but so far, there are no indications of it. He noted that the BJP government's five-year tenure is coming to an end in ten months. Any more delay would lead to problems in the party, Ravi warned.

"Opportunists are given positions in the party while loyalists have been sidelined. This injustice has to be set right," he said.

Ravi demanded action against 12 MLAs who cross-voted during the recent elections to the Legislative Council.

"If rotten fruits are mixed with good fruits, all fruits will be rotten," he quipped. If action is not taken against them, it would result in adverse implications for the party, he cautioned.

Appachu Ranjan said as many as 71 MLAs had been assured by the senior leaders of the party that cabinet expansion would take place by June 15-16.

"If it's not done by June 16, a group of 15 MLAs will go to Delhi to bring to the notice of the central leadership on the issues of cabinet expansion and cross voting," he said.