View of Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru.
The state government’s decision to confer “cabinet rank” on MLAs and MLCs and confer “minister of state” status on party workers appointed to head government boards, corporations and offices is likely to put further pressure on the state exchequer, especially at a time when the state relies heavily on borrowing to fund capital expenditure.
Apart from the 31 constitutionally sanctioned government ministers at present (two vacant, out of a total of 33), the ruling Congress has accorded cabinet rank to 43 legislators appointed to various boards and corporations. In addition, 53 party workers were granted the status of Minister of State.
Several MLAs and MLCs were also assigned advisory and other roles, including legal, economic and policy advisors to the Chief Minister; Government Representative at Delhi; Chairman of the Commission for Administrative Reforms; Vice-Chairman, Karnataka State Policy and Planning Commission; the chairman and four vice-chairmen of the guarantee committee; and media advisor to the Prime Minister. All of these positions are of either cabinet or foreign minister rank.
With the latest decision to grant Minister of State status to 53 party workers, the total number of individuals enjoying the privilege at the Cabinet or Ministerial level now exceeds the total strength of Congress MLAs in the Assembly.
After many discussions
Congress sources said that after several rounds of discussions, the government appointed party workers to boards and corporations to boost the morale of the cadres. Ahead of the rural and urban local body elections, a notification was issued to grant ministerial status to 53 party functionaries in a bid to “please everyone”, party sources said.
Although these legislators and party workers are not technically part of the Council of Ministers, the status entitles them to benefits equivalent to those enjoyed by ministers. They are provided with offices, staff, personal assistants, security personnel, vehicles, salary, accommodation, telephone equipment and travel allowances.
Why do parties do this?
The 91st Constitutional Amendment (2003), passed during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, limited the size of the Council of Ministers to 15% of the total strength of the House. As a result, ruling parties often face pressure to accommodate senior lawmakers who cannot be inducted into the cabinet. To manage dissent and appease the aspirants, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has given cabinet rank to several members. Such appointments are seen as a way to curb internal factionalism and maintain party cohesion, a Congress party functionary said.
The BJP and JD(S) accused the Congress government of favoring political appointments for political survival.
They allege that the funding of the five guarantee schemes has already caused fiscal stress, diversion of funds meant for social welfare of SCs and STs and bottlenecks in infrastructure and that these additional appointments are adding to the burden.
Published – 14 Feb 2026 19:51 IST