BJP MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi raises pitch for cabinet berth for all defectors
Bengaluru, Jan 31: As Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa camps in Delhi for discussions with BJP leadership on cabinet expansion, a key leader among the 11 disqualified Congress-JDS MLAs who won bypolls on the ruling party ticket on Friday made it clear all of them should be made ministers.
Gokak legislator Ramesh Jarkiholi, who had played a key role in bringing down the Congress-JDS coalition government paving the way for the BJP to come to power in July last year, also demanded Cabinet berth for two other defectors, who lost in the bypolls held in December.
The former Congress leader, however, added the final call will be taken by the party's central leadership.
"All the eleven should be given minister post we continue to stress on it, regarding those who lost, it will not be decided today, but we urge that they should also be given," Jarkiholi said replying to a question from reporters here.
He dubbed as media speculation reports that a few of the defectors would be denied ministerial berths in the six.
"Our demand is that all eleven of us should be made Ministers, as we have sacrificed by resigning as MLAs and have taken risk. Those lost should also be made Ministers, but we leave it to the high command," he said.
Jarkiholi said BJP was not behind their resignation as legislators' from Congress-JD (S), and the J P Nadda-led party was treating them well.
Shortly after Jarkiholi's media interaction, Yediyurappa got the green signal for the cabinet expansion from the central BJP leadership.
Except for one or two, most of the disqualified JDS- Congress MLAs who got re-elected in the bypolls on BJP tickets will be made ministers, he said, adding there won't be any additional deputy chief ministers.
In all 17 Congress and JD(S) legislators were disqualified by the assembly speaker last year after they revolted against the coalition government leading to its fall on July 13.
Of them, as many as 13 had contested the bypolls held for 15 assembly seats and barring A H Vishwanath (Hunsur) and M T B Nagaraj (Hoskote) all others emerged triumphant as BJP candidates.
Though Yediyurappa has made it clear that 11 who got re- elected in the bypolls on BJP ticket will be made ministers, according to sources, the central leadership is not keen on inducting all of them and wants to give opportunity to party loyalists also.
Vishwanath and Nagaraj have been openly demanding Cabinet berth for them stating that Yediyurappa had given a word to them.
Currently there are 18 ministers, including the Chief Minister in the cabinet that has a sanctioned strength of 34.
Sixteen berths are still vacant.
The cabinet expansion will not be an easy task for the Chief Minister as he will have to strike a balance by accommodating the victorious disqualified legislators as promised and also make place for the old guard, upset at being "neglected" in the first round of the induction exercise.
He also has to give adequate representation to various castes and regions in his cabinet and also deal with allocation of key portfolios.
Responding to a question about the delay in the Ministry expansion, Jarkiholi said, "let it be, even if it is delayed for a month, we are ready to wait. May be you (media) are upset."
He said they had not put any condition or given any deadline while joining the BJP.
"I request the media don't spread false news," he added.
Also making it clear that he had never staked claim for Deputy Chief Minister post, Jarkiholi termed it as media creation.
"I'm making it clear I have never asked for it. We will abide by high command decision and give full cooperation. We will move ahead under the Chief Ministership of Yediyurappa," he added.
Yediyurappa, who already has three deputies, had recently ruled out creation of any more Deputy Chief Minister's post.
Jarkiholi along with Health Minister Sriramulu had in the past made no secret of their ambition to become DCM.
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
