Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai, expanded his cabinet by inducting 29 ministers on Wednesday. Seemingly, he is trying to strike a fine balance between both pro and anti BS Yediyurappa factions by keeping equal distances from both. Many of his other loyalists, including MP Renukacharya, SR Vishwanath, H Halappa, have not also been made ministers.

The new Ministers were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot at the Raj Bhavan here.  The new faces in the cabinet are V Sunil Kumar (Karkala), Araga Jnanendra (Thirthahalli), Munirathna (R R Nagar), Halappa Achar (Yelburga), Shankar Patil Munenkopp (Navalgunda) and B C Nagesh (Tiptur).

Among those in the Yediyurappa cabinet who made it to Bommai's Ministry are Govind Karjol (Mudhol), R Ashoka (Padmanabhanagar), K S Eshwarappa (Shivamogga), CN Ashwath Narayan (Malleshwaram), Umesh Katti (Hukkeri), ST Somashekar (Yeshwanthpur), V Somanna (Govindraj Nagar), K Sudhakar (Chikkaballapura), and BC Patil (Hirekeruru), Kota Srinivas Poojary (MLC).  Also, JC Madhuswamy (Chikkanayakanahalli) Prabhu Chauhan (Aurad), S Angara (Sullia), Anand Singh (Vijayanagara), B Sriramulu (Molkalmuru), CC Patil (Nargund), M T B Nagaraj (MLC).

Bommai has also inducted 10 legislators who had joined BJP after quitting Congress-JD(S) coalition in 2019, and helped the saffron party to come to power. Eleven of them were Ministers in the Yediyurappa government, out of them two Shrimant Patil and R Shankar have not made it to the Bommai cabinet, while Munirathna has been newly inducted.

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