New Delhi, DHNS: Makes efforts for continuation of Siddeshwara in Union ministry. Karnataka BJP president B S Yeddyurappa on Friday lobbied hard with the party’s central leadership for inclusion of his close confidante Shobha Karandlaje (in pic), Chikkamagaluru MP, in the state core committee.

On Thursday, the central leadership had dropped Karandlaje’s name from the list of core committee members that was proposed by Yeddyurappa.

Accompanied by his loyalists Union Minister of State for Heavy Industries G M Siddeshwara, former Karnataka ministers Basavaraj Bommai and Aravind Limbavali, Karwar MP Ananth Kumar Hedge and state general secretary N Ravi Kumar, Yeddyurappa made a whirlwind tour of the national capital meeting some of the senior Union ministers.
He met Arun Jaitley, Rajnath Singh and Nirmala Sitharaman and requested them to put pressure on party top brass to induct Karandlaje and Ravi Kumar in the core committee.
May meet Amit Shah.

Sources said he requested these ministers to prevail upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi to continue Siddeshwara in the council of ministers. The party top brass had asked Siddeshwara to resign from the ministry and work for the party as Modi had inducted Bijapur MP Ramesh Jigajinagi into the ministry. Siddeshwara had sought a week’s time to resign as his birthday was on July 5, the day on which the ministry was rejigged.

“None of the union ministers gave any assurance to Yeddyurappa and instead advised him to meet BJP president Amit Shah to plead his case. However, despite his attempt to meet Shah, the BJP president has not given Yeddyurappa an appointment so far”, sources told Deccan Herald.

Yeddyurappa told reporters, “Although I recommended Shobha Karandlaje and Ravi Kumar for the core committee as they are state general secretaries, senior leaders dropped their names from the list. It is the party’s decision and I have no objection to it.”

On Siddeshwara, he said it was unfortunate that the party wanted him to work for the organisation. “I will meet Amit Shah at the earliest and request him to ensure that Siddeshwara is continued in the council of ministers,” he remarked.