Minister Ramalinga Reddy’s Resignation Issue Resolved: CM Shivakumar

Bengaluru: Earlier on Saturday, Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that the crisis triggered by Minister Ramalinga Reddy’s resignation over portfolio allocation has been resolved after protracted talks with the senior Congress leader. Shivakumar met Reddy for about two-and-a-half hours at a private hotel in Jayanagar late on Friday night, amid efforts by the Congress leadership to persuade the senior leader to withdraw his resignation.

The meeting lasted until Saturday morning.

Senior Congress leaders and some of Reddy’s close associates also participated in the discussions.

“This is a family matter. We will all sit together and talk. Everything has been resolved,” Shivakumar told reporters after emerging from the meeting around 1.30 am.

“He expressed his complaint; it was a case of miscommunication. Something happened and we will sort it out. Don’t worry, we will manage everything in the first class. We have given opportunities to all the senior leaders and we will fix everything,” Shivakumar said and expressed confidence that the government will move forward together.

Highlighting his long-standing relationship with the senior minister, he said, “Ramalinga Reddy and I have been friends since 1980. Currently, I am working as the chief minister; earlier, I was a minister and he was a minister. We are all friends.” Reddy had announced his resignation on Friday, alleging that the assurances given to him regarding the Bengaluru Development portfolio following portfolio allocation in the newly formed Shivakumar government were not fulfilled.

When asked whether he would withdraw his resignation if the Prime Minister asked him to do so, Reddy avoided going into details and echoed Shivakumar’s words.

“I am saying the same thing he (CM) told you. Everything is solved. That’s all,” Reddy said.

The late-night meeting took place amid intense efforts by the Congress leadership to contain discontent within the Cabinet after Reddy’s resignation triggered the first major political fight for the three-day Shivakumar-led Congress government.