Karnataka chief minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda’s decision to add nine new faces to his Cabinet later this week has triggered a fresh race among aspirants.
Sources in the party said with Mr Gowda likely to expand the Cabinet on Thursday, contenders are queuing up before former chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa and his arch-rival Jagadish Shettar.
So far, the BJP has cleared Balachandra Jarkiholi, Anand Asnotikar, Raju Gowda, C.P. Yogishwar and independent legislator Varthur Prakash, leaving four vacancies to be filled before Thursday. Mr Gowda plans to keep both sides evenly balanced and will therefore not fill the other three slots that are vacant.
In contention are general secretary C.T Ravi and chief whip D.N. Jeevaraj from Chikmagalur district. Mr Jeevaraj quit his post in the hope he would be rewarded for his loyalty to Mr Yeddyurappa. Similarly, Mr B. Suresh Gowda and S. Sogadu Shivanna, both from Tumkur, are in the race from rival camps.
Sources said state unit president K S Eshwarappa has expressed reservations over inducting two former ministers, Aravind Limbavali and S.K Bellubbi, both Mr Shettar’s supporters.