The political tensions surrounding Karnataka’s cabinet expansion escalated on Monday after former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah skipped the swearing-in ceremony at Lok Bhavan, where Chief Minister D K Shivakumar
inducted the new ministers into his council.
Siddaramaiah’s absence from the high-profile event came amid mounting discontent within the Congress over the final list of ministers. As per reports, he was unhappy with the last-minute exclusion of Gayathri Shante Gowda, a prominent Kuruba leader, from the cabinet.
Governor Gehlot, Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara were present on the dais as the newly inducted ministers, including Ajay Singh, took oath.
Siddaramaiah’s absence comes at a time when the Congress is facing growing dissatisfaction over the cabinet expansion, with resignations, closed-door meetings and public expressions of disappointment from leaders who were denied ministerial berths.
