In the second expansion in three days, Karnataka Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on Thursday inducted five ministers of cabinet rank into his ministry, but kept out the controversial Reddy brothers.
Gowda managed to shrug off pressure by mining magnet G Janardhana Reddy, his brother Karunakara Reddy and their family associate B Sreeramulu to regain ministerial berth.
In Thursday's exercise that took the strength of the ministry to 27, Balachandra Laxmanrao Jarkiholi, Anand Vasanth Asnotikar, Raju Gowda (Narasimha Naik), C P Yogeshwar and Varthur Prakash (Ind) were administered oath of office and secrecy by Governor H R Bhardwaj at Raj Bhavan.
Yogeshwar, Raju Gowda and Prakash are first timers into the ministry. Jarkiholi and Asnotikar had served in the previous B S Yeddyurappa government. Gowda, who was sworn-in as chief minister on August 4, has still kept seven ministerial berths vacant, keeping the hopes of many ministerial aspirants alive.
On August 8, Gowda, inducted 21 cabinet rank ministers, all of whom were in the Yeddyurappa ministry.
Gowda who came under intense pressure for ministerial slot, rushed to New Delhi this morning, sought the nod of his party high command for the second installment of ministry expansion and returned by evening to complete the exercise.
The Bharatiya Janata Party high command has decided to keep away the Reddy brothers following their indictment by the Lokayukta report on illegal mining.