CM-designate Shettar grapples with ministry formation

DHNS

Bangalore, 12 July 2012: D.V. Sadananda Gowda Wednesday quit as Karnataka chief minister and Jagadish Sehttar staked claim to form the new government as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party grappled with forming a ministry satisfactory to various factions.

Accompanied state BJP chief K.S. Eshwarappa, Shettar flew to the national capital hours after being appointed by Governor H.R. Bhardwaj as the chief minister and invited to take oath Thursday.

Shettar staked claim to form the government shortly after D.V. Sadananda Gowda submitted his resignation as the chief minister to Bhardwaj at Raj Bhavan.

"I and Shettar are going to Delhi to meet our party president and other leaders tonight to decide who all should be in the ministry," Eshwarappa told reporters in Bangalore.

He said efforts were on to see that a full ministry was formed at one go. The state can have a 34-member ministry including the chief minister.

This is one of the demands of the supporters of Gowda, who had held up the meeting of the legislature wing of party Tuesday to elect Shettar as its leader to enable him to stake claim to form the government.

Eshwarappa said it was possible that one or two slots might be kept vacant. Sehttar, 56, will be BJP’s third chief minister in Karnataka in four years and will have a short term in office as assembly elections are due next May.

Gowda too did not complete an year in office. He took office last August 4 after BJP’s first chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa was forced to quit July 31 over mining bribery charges.

Gowda was forced out of office following several months of campaign led by Yeddyurappa. The campaign culminated in Shettar and eight other minister resigning leaving little option to BJP leadership but to ask Gowda to make way for Shettar.
Shettar’s oath-taking ceremony is scheduled at noon Thursday at Raj Bhavan.