The Congress government in Karnataka granted ministerial status to 54 appointees to various boards, corporations, and committees through an order dated February 7, stirring up a controversy. The 54 persons are not elected representatives but have been appointed to state-bodies by the government.
The Opposition BJP slammed the move, calling it inappropriate expenditure, as cabinet minister status comes with financial remuneration and administrative perks.
Apart from cabinet ministers, certain government appointees such as media advisor to the chief minister, advocate general, as well as chairpersons of boards and corporations too are given the status of a cabinet minister.
Media reports say that Karnataka has around 140 people who enjoy cabinet rank, including the 32 cabinet ministers. Even though the exact number of people with this status in the current government is not known, reports indicate that there are more ‘ministers’ in the state than the number of MLAs the Congress has in Karnataka, which is 136.
For many months now, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has been asking for a rejig of the Cabinet but sources indicate that the Congress high command has been reluctant since the big question of leadership change in the state is still being deliberated over. Sources in the Karnataka government say that the new appointments are a means to accommodate certain leaders, many of whom were hoping to be appointed as ministers in a Cabinet reshuffle.
The state government had completed appointments to some major boards and corporations in September 2025 and recently completed the rest of appointments.
After the media began reporting on the issue, the Karnataka BJP has been demanding that the state government make public the list of people granted minister status.
Chief Whip of the Opposition in the Legislative Council N Ravikumar demanded that the state government make public the list of people who have been granted minister status and also a white paper on the expenditure being incurred on such appointments. He said that the Constitution 91st Amendment Act, 2003, caps the state cabinet strength at 15% of elected MLAs. In the case of Karnataka, this amounts to 33 of a total strength of 224 MLAs.
Cabinet rank positions come with a monthly pay of Rs 50,000, a hospitality allowance of Rs 3,000, house rent allowance of Rs 80,000, maintenance and staff support of Rs 20,000, daily allowance of about Rs 2,500, and fuel expenditure of about 1,000 litres per month. Perks include administrative staff such as assistants and secretaries, and vehicles.
On being questioned, Congress state president and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar told the media that the government had learned the practice from the BJP. He said that it was Congress workers who brought the party to power in the state and that they would be given power.