Shivakumar expands Cabinet, a look at his 19 new ministers

Half of the new inductees — Kashappanavar, Shanthegowda, Balakrishna, Singh, Raghumurthy, Lamani, Arshad, Shivalinge Gowda, Narendraswamy and Basavanthappa — are first-time ministers.

The AICC also announced the names for other key legislative posts. Senior legislator G S Patil has been named Speaker of the Assembly, while first-time MLA A S Ponnanna will serve as Deputy Speaker.

In the Legislative Council, Saleem Ahmed has been appointed Chairman, while Umashree will serve as Deputy Chairperson.

Here is a look at who the new ministers are:

P M Narendraswamy

A senior Congress leader and a three-time MLA, 63-year-oldNarendraswamy represents the Malavalli constituency in Mandya district. Hailing from the SC community, his first stint in the Assembly was as an Independent MLA in 2008, before he joined Congress in 2013.

An engineering graduate, he won the 2013 and 2023 polls on a Congress ticket and lost the 2018 election to JD(S) candidate K Annadani. Previously, he has served as the chairman of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board.

Shivaraj Tangadagi

Minister of Backward Classes Welfare, and Kannada and Culture minister in the previous Siddaramaiah Cabinet, Tangadagi, 55, represents the Kanakagiri constituency in Koppal district and is a prominent Scheduled Tribes leader.

A three-time MLA, he first tasted electoral success as an Independent in 2008. He won the 2013 and 2023 election on a Congress ticket.

Considered a Siddaramaiah loyalist, he was also part of the Cabinet during Siddaramaiah’s first tenure as CM from 2013-2018.

Rudrappa Lamani

The former Deputy Speaker of the Assembly, 67-year-old Lamani is a two-time MLA from Haveri. He first won on a Congress ticket in 2013.

Belonging to the Banjara community, which is politically significant in parts of Central Karnataka, he was made minister during his first term as MLA, where he portfolios like Textiles and Muzrai during Siddaramaiah’s first tenure, and was elected Deputy Speaker of the Assembly in June 2023.

K S Basavanthappa

Among the first-time legislators offered a berth in the Shivakumar Cabinet, Basavanthappa, 57-year-old is the MLA from the SC-reserved Mayakonda constituency in Davanagere district.

B Nagendra

Nagendra, 54, is a four-time MLA and represents the ST-reserved Bellary Rural seat. His first electoral win was as BJP candidate from Kudligi seat in 2008 and retained the seat as an Independent in 2013. He switched to Congress in 2018 to contest from Bellary Rural and has won two consecutive polls.

Under Siddaramaiah, he was appointed Minister for Scheduled Tribes Welfare, Youth Empowerment, and Sports.

He resigned as minister in June 2024 following a corruption scandal at the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation and was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate.

T Raghumurthy

A three-time legislator from Challakere constituency, 63-year-old Raghumurthy won his first election in 2013 and has represented the constituency since.

Hailing from ST community, he has previously served as the chairman of the Karnataka State Small Scale Industries Development Corporation.

B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan

A five-time MLA from Chamrajpet, Khan, 60, is influential among minority voters. Formerly with JD(S), he joined Congress in 2018. In the past, he has held key portfolios like Housing, Waqf, and Food and Civil Supplies.

His induction to the Cabinet was under a shadow of doubt following allegations that he had worked against Congress interests during the Davanagere South bypoll held in April.

He is seen to be a staunch Siddaramaiah loyalist.

Rizwan Arshad

A two-time MLA from Shivajinagar, 46-year-old Arshad rose through the ranks of the NSUI and Youth Congress.

He contested the Lok Sabha elections from Bangalore Central constituency twice – 2014 and 2019 – but lost both times to BJP’s P C Mohan. Arshad was formerly an MLC, before contesting Shivajinagar by-poll in 2019 to secure his maiden election win.

He retained the seat in 2023 and is among the young faces in the Shivakumar Cabinet.

Santosh Lad

Currently representing Kalghatgi-Alnavar in Dharwad district, Lad, 51, was formerly Labour Minister in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet. He started his electoral career in 2004 as a JD(S) candidate from Sandur, which he won.

Seen to be outspoken,Lad joined the Congress in 2008 and was part of the Siddaramaiah Cabinet during both his terms as CM.

Madhu Bangarappa

Son of former CM S Bangarappa, 59-year-old Madhu represents the Sorab constituency in Shivamogga district and has previously served as the Minister for Primary and Secondary Education.

Bangarappa was formerly with the JD(S), before shifting loyalties to Congress.

In Sorab, he regularly faces off against his brother Kumar, who is associated with the BJP.

C Putturangashetty

Since 2008, Putturangashetty, 71, has won four consecutive elections from the Chamarajanagar seat. During the Congress-JD(S) government’s tenure, he served as Minister for Backward Classes Welfare.

Before securing a Cabinet berth, he served as the chairman of the Mysore Sales International Limited.

S S Mallikarjun

Representing Davangere North in the Assembly, 58-year-old Mallikarjun is the son of veteran leader Shamanur Shivashankarappa. During Siddaramaiah’s tenure, he served as Minister for Mines and Geology, and Horticulture.

Though he was expected to be dropped from the Cabinet, he is rumoured to have piled pressure on the high command for his induction. His wife, Prabha Mallikarjun is an MP, while his son Samarth Mallikarjun is an MLA from Davanagere South.

Ajay Singh

Along with Yathindra Siddaramaiah and Madhu Bangarappa, Ajay Singh, 52, is the third minister whose father has served as CM of Karnataka.

Son of former CM Dharam Singh, he has represented the Jevaragi seat three consecutive times from 2013.

He served as the chairman of the Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board before being picked in the Shivakumar Cabinet.

N Chaluvarayaswamy

A four-time MLA Nagamangala in Mandya district, the 66-year-old was Agriculture Minister in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet. Formerly associated with the JD(S), he joined Congress in 2018.

During his days in the JD(S), he was also elected as MP from the Mandya Lok Sabha seat.

K M Shivalinge Gowda

Formerly with the JD(S), 68-year-old Gowda joined Congress ahead of 2023 polls and won for the fourth consecutive time from Arsikere constituency in Hassan district.

He has previously served as the chairman of the Karnataka Housing Board.

H C Balakrishna

Representing the Magadi seat in Bengaluru South district, the 61-year-old is a five-time legislator. Seen as a Shivakumar loyalist, Balakrishna won his first Assembly election as a BJP candidate in 1994.

He later joined the JD(S) and won from the constituency thrice between 2004 and 2013. He was elected for the fifth time in 2023.

Basavaraj Rayareddy

Rayareddy, 69, has represented Yelburga constituency in Koppal district six times.His first Assembly election victory came in 1985 as a Janata Dal candidate. In 1996, he was elected to the Lok Sabha on a Janata Dal ticket.

Rayareddy joined the Congress ahead of 2004 polls and served as the Higher Education Minister during Siddaramaiah’s first stint as CM. In 1994, he served as the Housing Minister.

In 2023, he was appointed as the financial advisor to the CM.

Vijayanand Kashappanavar

Hailing from a family of politicians, Kashappanavar, 54, represents Hungund constituency in Bagalkot district. He has represented the constituency twice since 2013, having lost the 2018 polls.

Laxman Savadi

A veteran from Athani in Belagavi district, 66-year-old Savadi was formerly Deputy CM during the BJP tenure before joining Congress in 2023.
During his days in the BJP, he also served as Transport minister. In 2012, he was among the three legislators who courted controversy over the “porn gate” scandal – watching obscene videos during Assembly proceedings.