Deputy CM Shivakumar holds talks with sulking Ramalinga Reddy, convinces him on ministry

BENGALURU: A day after the Siddaramaiah Cabinet was expanded to include 24 more ministers, allocation of portfolios to the newly sworn-in ministers, is yet to be finalised.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is said to have come up with two-to-three lists of portfolio allocation, but some seniors seem to be unhappy. Senior Congress leader Ramalinga Reddy was not satisfied with the Transport department and G Parameshwara, who was tipped to get the Home departmemt. had apparently hinted that he was more keen on the Revenue department.

On Sunday, Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar and his brother and MP D K Suresh visited Ramalinga Reddy’s residence to convince him to accept the portfolio.

After discussions between the trio, Shivakumar and Suresh succeeded in convincing Reddy. The Deputy CM offered Reddy an additional portfolio along with the Transport department and Reddy seems to have agreed to the proposal.

Earlier, Ramalinga Reddy had said that he will resign as minister if Chief Minister Siddaramaiah allots the Transport department to him. Apparently, he is not at all ready to accept Transport department as he was given the same department during the earlier Congress government.

A meeting held at Ramalinga Reddy’s residence.

Ramalinga Reddy is the seniormost minister in the Cabinet, after Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Secondly, Transport is considered a minor portfolio and Reddy was said to be angling for major portfolio like Revenue. He had already served for four-and–half years as Transport Minister in the previous Congress government 2013-18. Another factor is that Major ministries has given to a younger minister, which is being considered an insult to the seniors. If the CM sticks to his decision, Reddy’s stand is that he would give up the ministerial position rather than being humiliated and handling the same portfolio.

Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar briefing the media after a meeting with Ramalinga Reddy.

After the meeting with Ramalinga Reddy, Deputy CM Shivakumar said, “I called on him and spoke to him in the larger interest of the party. There have been some speculations. If anyone has been elected eight times as an MLA, it is none other than Ramalinga Reddy. We have built the party, nurtured it and gone through many difficulties. Last time, neither he nor I had a ministerial position. If we had gone to another party due of that, our position now would have been different. Seniority comes naturally to an individual. Ramalinga Reddy is committed to the party. Sometimes nothing can be done in politics”, he added.