The Congress party in Karnataka has unveiled a list of 24 legislators who will take the oath as ministers on May 27. This announcement comes a week after assuming power in the state, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar being sworn in on May 20. The new cabinet members include prominent figures such as H K Patil, Krishna Byregowda, N Cheluvarayaswamy, K Venkatesh, H C Mahadevappa, Eshwar Khandre, and Dinesh Gundu Rao, among others.

Notably, the Karnataka government can have a maximum of 34 ministers, and the remaining ten positions will be filled by these newly announced ministers. The official swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for Saturday at noon. Alongside the aforementioned names, the list also includes Kyathasandra N Rajanna, Sharanabasappa Darshanapur, Shivanand Patil, Ramappa Balappa Timmapur, S S Mallikarjun, Shivaraj Sangappa Tangadagi, Sharanaprakash Rudrappa Patil, Mankal Vaidya, Laxmi Hebbalkar, Rahim Khan, D Sudhakar, Santosh Lad, N S Boseraju, Suresha B S, Madhu Bangarappa, M C Sudhakar, and B Nagendra.

According to sources within the Congress party, Lakshmi Hebbalkar, Madhu Bangarappa, D Sudhakar, Cheluvaraya Swami, Mankul Vaidya, and M C Sudhakar are considered close to Shivakumar. The list of ministers reflects a diverse representation, with six Lingayats and four Vokkaligas included. Additionally, there are three MLAs from Scheduled Castes, two from Scheduled Tribes, and five from Other Backward Communities.

The cabinet formation ensures that Brahmins are represented through Dinesh Gundu Rao's inclusion. Geographical considerations have also been taken into account, with seven ministers each from Old Mysuru and Kalyana Karnataka regions, six from Kittur Karnataka region, and two from central Karnataka.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has aimed to strike a balance by providing representation based on caste and region while showing respect to both senior and junior MLAs. The allocation of portfolios is yet to be announced, and it is expected to be done by Saturday evening.

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar have spent the past three days in Delhi, engaging in extensive discussions with party leaders, including AICC general secretaries KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala. The final list of ministers was approved by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi.

Before returning to Bengaluru for the oath-taking ceremony, the leaders met Sonia Gandhi, marking their first interaction after government formation in the state. Despite initial differences over potential ministerial candidates, Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar resolved their disagreements during the discussions.