Siddaramaiah

Karnataka bitcoin scam accused Srikrishna Ramesh alias 'Sriki' has reportedly gone missing barely a week after he was released on bail. Interestingly, Opposition leader Siddaramaiah had three days ago claimed that the hacker faced a life threat and needed protection.

On Friday, the Congress announced the names of 24 more ministers, taking the strength of the cabinet to 34, the maximum allowed under the law. Congress leaders HK Patil and Krishna Byregowda were sworn in as ministers in the Karnataka Cabinet expansion.

On Saturday, the Congress won an absolute majority in Karnataka with the party crossing the halfway mark of 113 seats in the 224-member assembly.

In its manifesto for elections to the 224-member Assembly in Karnataka, the Congress said it was committed to taking firm and decisive action against individuals and organisations spreading hatred amongst communities on grounds of caste and religion.

The Karnataka government can have 34 ministers. Ten of them, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar, were sworn in on May 20. According to the Chief Minister's office, the swearing-in will take place at 11:45 AM inside the Raj Bhavan.

The government moved Muslims into the 10 percent Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) pool. President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) DK Shivakumar termed the step "unconstitutional".

"I'm giving up my Assembly seat to support my son BY Vijayendra. I implore Shikaripura voters to ensure that he wins by a wide margin. I am not running in the next election," said the Karnataka BJP leader.

Union Minister Prahlad Joshi affirmed the BJP’s commitment to advancing the Mahadayi Yojana despite delays. He noted the project is under judicial review but not rejected. Joshi urged state government action and criticized Congress for political manoeuvring, emphasizing the BJP's openness to investigations.

Speaking to reporters, CM Bommai said on one hand Shivakumar is going around seeking blessings to become the chief minister, while on the other Siddaramaiah is claiming that he is the next chief minister.

The Congress on March 25 put out the first list of 124 candidates for the upcoming Karnataka assembly elections. The remaining 100 names is likely to be announced later this week.