DK Shivakumar's First Reaction on Karnataka Minister Ramalinga Reddy's Cabinet Exit

Karnataka Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Friday announced that he will resign from the state Cabinet, expressing strong displeasure over portfolio allocation and claiming that he was not given the Bengaluru development portfolio as promised to him by senior leaders. Reacting to the development, Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that Reddy is a "great friend" and they will "sort out the problem." "Nothing to worry. He is a great friend. We are the closest friends among the Cabinet. We will sort out the problem," Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar told reporters."Ramalinga Reddy is my colleague and our senior leader. He said that he cannot go to the village and work. He said that I should give him some other ministerial post. I will talk

to Ramalinga Reddy and make everything right," the Karnataka Chief Minister said.

In his letter to CM DK Shivakumar, Reddy wrote: "I am thankful to you and the Congress party for the opportunity given in your cabinet. I can't work against my conscience and have decided to submit my resignation. I will continue as an MLA and a party worker."Reddy, a veteran Congress leader, said he had been repeatedly assured of the Bengaluru development portfolio but was instead assigned the irrigation portfolio in the recent allocation. Calling the decision “disappointing,” he said it prompted his decision to step down from ministerial responsibility.Reddy, an eight-time MLA from Bengaluru, said he had never lobbied for ministerial office or sought any specific department from the party leadership during his five-decade-long political career.