Kumaraswamy allocates portfolios, retains finance

Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy retained the key portfolio of Finance and gave Home to his deputy G Parameshwara from the Congress, as he allocated portfolios tonight after intense bargaining between the coalition partners.

Kumaraswamy is also keeping with him the Energy portfolio which was the bone of contention between the two parties, before the Congress agreed to concede the ground to JD(S).

Portfolio sharing had turned out to be a thorny issue between the Congress and JDS and was thrashed out after much haggling, with both parties announcing an agreement on June one.

While Kumaraswamy's brother H D Revanna has been given Public Works Department, state's senior Congress leader D K Shivakumar gets Major and Medium Irrigation, as also Medical Education, after he had initially insisted on Energy.

The portfolio allocation has been made in line with the power sharing agreement.

Senior Congress leader R V Deshpande gets Revenue and K J George Large and Medium Industries and IT&BT.

The lone woman minister, yesteryear Kannada actress-turned-MLC Jayamala has been given Women and Child development along with Kannada and Culture.

83 year-old M C Managuli, who is the seniormost minister in the coalition government, gets Horticulture.

Portfolios allocated to Congress Ministers are Krishna Byre Gowda (Rural Development, Law and Justice, Parliamentary Affairs), Shivashankara Reddy (Agriculture);,
Ramesh Jarkiholi (Municipalities and Local Bodies, Ports and Inland transport), Priyank Kharge (Social Welfare), U T Khader (Housing, City Corporations);
On the JD(S) side, the portfolios allotted are Bandeppa Kashampur (Cooperation), G T Deve Gowda (Higher Education), D C Thammanna (Transport);