Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on Saturday asserted that he intended to carry out a Cabinet expansion before the Assembly session on Monday, but was awaiting a nod from the BJP high command.
Speaking to reporters at the Karnataka Bhavan here, Yediyurappa said: “I discussed this issue with both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national President JP Nadda last night. Nadda assured me that he will discuss it with Modi and let me know. Therefore, I am eagerly waiting for their call. I am very hopeful that I may get a call by this evening,” he said.
He added that once he got a call, Cabinet expansion would be a mere formality to be effected on Sunday.
Yediyurappa is under tremendous pressure from various quarters within the party to carry out this exercise. There are more than a dozen aspirants lobbying for six vacant berths in the Council of Ministers.
Answering a question, he said his three-day New Delhi visit was a “success”, adding that his meeting with Modi lasted more than 45 minutes instead of the scheduled 15 minutes. “He heard me patiently and even gave in-principle approval to most of the projects I requested him to clear,” Yediyurappa claimed.
–IANS
