Displeasure among ministers, but B.S.Yediyurappa says all is well

Bengaluru: Reshuffle and allocation of portfolios to seven new ministers by Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa on Thursday ruffled some feathers.

The exercise did not go down well with a section of his ministerial colleagues, who are sore over the departments allocated to them and some did not attend the cabinet meeting held after the reshuffle.

Earlier, as the resentment among a few ministers came out in the open, Yediyurappa, sought to brush it aside, saying some kind of displeasure was normal whenever portfolios were changed and that he had convinced them.

However, despite efforts by him and his aides to bring around those upset, at least four - K Sudhakar, K Gopalaiah, J C Madhuswamy and M T B Nagaraj -- according to official sources, were not present in the cabinet meet chaired by Yediyurappa in the evening, signalling all was still not well.

But, clarifying about the absence of the ministers, Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said they had taken prior permission from the Chief Minister.

"The Chief Minister has spoken to ministers regarding portfolios allocated to them, there is no disgruntlement. Our leadership and party have the capacity to resolve such issues. Such reactions are normal during expansion or portfolio allocation," he told reporters after the cabinet meeting.

Earlier in the day following an official notification allocating portfolios, Madhuswamy skipped an event of Yediyurappa in his home district Tumakuru, apparently upset over losing some ministries held by him.

A few Congress-JD(S) rebels-turned BJP ministers like Nagaraj, Gopalaiah and K C Narayana Gowda, met at Health Minister K Sudhakar's residence and held a closed door discussion.

Subsequently, Bommai and Revenue Minister R Ashok, deputed by Yediyurappa, held talks with them following which they met the chief minister at his residence.

After the meeting, Yediyurappa said all the ministers were at ease and there was no resentment.

"I have called them and spoken to them, everyone is satisfied...I have spoken to everyone personally," he said, cabinet expansion or portfolio allocation was not an easy job as everyone cannot be satisfied.

"Within the limitations, I have shared the responsibilities, let them work, after some days if they still find issues, let's consider changing then," he added.

Nagaraj and Gopalaiah during an interaction with the media indicated they relented, but did not turn up at the cabinet meeting.

These ministers are upset over portfolios allocated to them or over the departments divested from them during the reallocation.

Madhuswamy was relieved of Law, Parliamentary Affairs, Legislation and Minor Irrigation portfolios and allocated Medical Education, Kannada and Culture departments.

He rejected reports that he was planning to resign, but said he had requested the Chief Minister not to change Minor Irrigation portfolio which was with him.

The Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Legislation department was given to Bommai as an additional portfolio.

Nagaraj said there was nothing for him to do in the Excise department and he had informed the Chief Minister that he didn't want it.

Nagaraj said he was a Housing Minister in the previous JDS-Congress coalition government where there were programmes providing houses to poor and developing slums.

"I resigned from the post and came out, I'm now given the Excise portfolio (in this government). What is there to do in the excise department?" he asked. PTI