If rumours are to be believed (and rumours are all there are at present), then Karnataka Congress chief G Parameshwara’s dreams of being made minister are unlikely to be fulfilled any time soon.
Once more a cabinet expansion and reshuffle has been proposed, triggering lobbying, pressure tactics, meetings and talk of Parameshwara possibly being made deputy chief minister or cabinet minister.
Siddaramaiah’s tenure as chief minister has so far been marred by frequent and embarrassing demands by his state unit president to be made deputy chief minister. Siddaramaiah however, has always done his best to prevent or pre-empt any such move on Parameshwara’s part.
According to the latest updates from the rumour mill, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is likely to induct Parameshwara into the cabinet as the Floor Leader in the Legislative Council.
As far as power goes, the Floor Leader in the Legislative Council is the next in command in the absence of the chief minister, but with a caveat: the Floor Leader is confined to the Legislative Council and will not be able to participate in the proceedings of the Assembly.
Siddaramaiah had stated a week ago that the cabinet exapansion and reshuffle would be done by the end of September. But according to sources in the know, even this is unlikely to happen very soon as is reportedly doing his best to prevent it.
How many proposed reshuffles?
Slightly over a year after the Congress government came to power in August 2014, Siddaramaiah had said that he would fill four vacancies in the government after the by-elections to the Ballari and Chikkodi-Sadalga seats was over.
This did not happen, and Siddaramaiah put off the expansion until the Dasara festival.
In February 2015, however, he made an exception for Satish Jairkiholi, a close associate who had threatened to quit if he was not given a portfolio that was more prestigious than excise. Siddaramaiah relented and gave him small industries department.
In April, ahead of the gram panchayat elections in May-June, Siddaramaiah had hinted that the move would be carried out soon, but that too was postponed.
In the midst of these almost-cabinet expansions, Parameshwara has repeatedly made loud and clear demands to be made deputy chief minister. In late January-February, Dalit groups made demands that a Dalit political leader be made the chief minister. Although they said that either Parameshwara or Mallikarjun Kharge were acceptable to them, most said that they wanted Parameshwara to head the state.