Bengaluru: The Congress-led Karnataka government has announced the formation of a 10-member Group of Ministers (GoM) to discuss subjects before they are presented to the state cabinet in a bid to build consensus and project an inclusive administration under Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar.
“When the chief minister takes a decision, there are talks that he takes them unilaterally,” G. Parameshwara, Deputy Chief Minister, told reporters Thursday in Bengaluru.
Parameshwara said the decision was modelled on an existing system in the Union Government, where a select group of ministers reviews decisions before being placed before the cabinet. This committee, Parameshwara said, is the first such initiative in the history of Karnataka. “Before any decisions are made, those subjects are first discussed here.”
The move comes after instances of cabinet ministers themselves opposing bills passed by the government. Notably, senior Minister Ramalinga Reddy publicly asked Shivakumar to reconsider a proposed move to introduce hefty parking charges in Bengaluru, leaving the government red-faced.
The government was also forced to withdraw the contentious Karnataka Government Parks (Preservation) (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which proposed diverting 5 percent of public parks for infrastructure projects.
The bill was seen as an attempt to circumvent resistance to the proposed Tunnel Road, which proposes to take over six acres of Lalbagh. Stiff resistance by various sections, including a mass protest on Sunday, forced the government to withdraw the bill.
Parameshwara said that the bill was not discussed in the Assembly due to persistent disruptions by the opposition, who then used the issue politically to “mislead” the people.
The government said that it will reintroduce the bill in the next session of the legislature with some amendments.
The 10-member GoM will be headed by the chief minister and will include Parameshwara, Priyank Kharge, Krishna Byre Gowda, M.B. Patil, Yathindra Siddaramaiah, K.J. George, K.H. Muniyappa, U.T. Khader and Satish Jarkiholi.
Shivakumar faced some resistance from within his own three-month-old government on other issues as well.
Having seen factionalism peak during Siddaramaiah’s reign as chief minister, Shivakumar is introducing measures that would project him as being more inclusive.
The other is the formation of an official list of spokespersons for the government.
Parameshwara said that there will be an eight-member team of ministers whose statements will be considered official.
Other than Parameshwara, Gowda, Kharge, Santosh Lad, Khader, Eshwar Khandre, H.C. Balakrishna and Lakshman Savadi will be the official spokespersons of the Karnataka government.
“Only when they (the ministers on the list) say it will be official; if not any ministers speaking will (be considered) their opinion,” Parameshwara said.
There have been several instances of ministers speaking independently, adding to the embarrassment of the party and government.
Parameshwara said that these ministers would receive daily briefings and would then speak on specified subjects.
The deputy chief minister said that if one of these ministers responds to political questions, their statements would be considered the government’s official view.
The move, Parameshwara said, is part of the “qualitative administration” the government is trying to pursue–and deliver.
(Edited by Sugita Katyal)