Modi 3.0 Cabinet: Kumaraswamy Among Five Karnataka MPs Inducted as Ministers
Mangaluru: Five Members of Parliament from Karnataka have been inducted as ministers in the Modi 3.0 government, while some senior leaders, including two former Chief Ministers, have missed out. The BJP appears to have employed a strategic selection process for these appointments.
The newly appointed ministers include four Lok Sabha MPs: former Chief Minister and JD(S) MP from Mandya H.D. Kumaraswamy, Bengaluru North MP Shobha Karandlaje, Dharwad MP Pralhad Joshi, and Tumakuru MP V. Somanna. Additionally, Rajya Sabha member Nirmala Sitharaman has been included.
Meanwhile, former Chief Ministers Jagadish Shettar (MP from Belgaum) and Basavaraj Bommai (Haveri), former Union Minister Ramesh Jigajinagi (Bijapur), PC Gaddigoudar (Bagalkot) and PC Mohan (Bangalore Central) missed the chance.
Party insiders suggest that the selection involved careful calculation including caste representation. Kumaraswamy's entry into the Lok Sabha from Mandya was anticipated due to the BJP-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka. Known for his shrewd politics, Kumaraswamy’s inclusion was expected to strengthen the coalition.
Shobha Karandlaje, representing the Vokkaliga community and Bengaluru City, is also aligned with the B.S. Yediyurappa camp. She was also the minister of state for agriculture in the last government. Pralhad Joshi, a Minister who served the Modi 2.0 government with a clean record, and finance minister Sitharaman were seen as reliable choices.
A senior BJP leader explained the possible rationale behind the non-inclusion of two former CMs.
“The party needed representation from the Lingayat community. Although both Shettar and Bommai are Lingayats, their former CM status made it impractical to appoint them as Ministers of State. With Nirmala Sitharaman and Pralhad Joshi already serving as cabinet ministers, and Kumaraswamy included from JD(S), it looks like the party decided to select Somanna who can be included as minister of state.”
The leader further noted, “Shobha, associated with the Yediyurappa camp, is already a minister. To avoid overrepresentation from the same faction, Bommai and other MPs linked to this camp were likely excluded.”
Dalit leader Ramesh Jigajinagi, who served in the Modi 1.0 government, was not re-elected. With JD(S) already represented by Kumaraswamy, Mallesh Babu from the same party did not secure a position. Govind Karjol, a first-time Lok Sabha member, was also not chosen.
