'Will heartily accept resignations'; Karnataka CM DK Shivakumar plays down threat from MLAs

BENGALURU: Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar warned Congress MLAs threatening to resign in protest over not getting ministerial berths. Shivakumar said he would heartily accept the resignations of MLAs within minutes of submission.

'Resignations are common in politics. No one can stop those who decide to resign. For those who think about the future, the party is important. They should realise that there is no scope for politics if our party is gone,” he clarified. Shivakumar reminded that he could have resigned during the rule of Dharam Singh or Siddaramaiah, but it was his patience to wait that helped him reach the heights.

DK Shivakumar also clarified that changes will be made to the board and corporation appointments in the state to resolve the grievances of the MLAs related to the ministry. Shivakumar said he had earlier made it clear that there would be changes in these appointments and in the case of ministers after two and a half years. Shivakumar also promised to talk with the MLAs separately regarding the appointments.

On Monday, 20 MLAs were sworn in as ministers as part of the Karnataka cabinet reshuffle. Following this, Congress MLA Yashwantrao Gowda Patil, among others, publicly protested and resigned. Supporters of the MLAs also came out to protest against the denial of ministerial berths to their favourite leaders.