Belagavi: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday said the central leadership has an affirmative opinion on the proposal of reinduction of KS Eshwarappa and Ramesh Jarkiholi in the state cabinet.
“I have presented their (Eshwarappa and Jarkiholi) cases before them (central party leadership) during my last visit to Delhi. They have an affirmative opinion (on it). Remaining things I will tell them. I cannot tell publicly.
I am in touch with Eshwarappa and Ramesh. I will talk to them,” he told reporters at Suvarna Soudha here.
CM was reacting to Eshwarappa and Jarkiholi abstention from the ongoing winter session being held here.
In reaction, Eshwarappa told reporters in Bengaluru that he has faith in Bommai’s comments made at Belagavi with regards to his reinduction. “CM has told reporters there (Belagavi) about the affirmative opinion of the central leadership on the issue (reinduction). I have faith in those comments made by the CM,” he said.
Jarkiholi and Eshwarappa were asked by BJP leadership to resign from Bommai’s ministry, following allegations of corruption and sex scandals, respectively.
Eshwarappa was asked to resign as Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister in April after a Belagavi-based contractor Santosh Patil committed suicide.
The deceased contractor had accused Eshwarappa and others close to him of allegedly demanding a commission to clear the bills for works he had carried out as a contractor.
However, Eshwarappa has been given a clean chit by the Criminal Investigation Department in its report submitted to the court. However, Patil’s wife approached Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot stating that the report favoured the minister.
Jarkiholi resigned as Water Resources Minister from BS Yediyurappa’s government after he was accused of sexual harassment. But the Special Investigation Team (SIT) gave him a clean chit after the investigation agency submitted a B-report (closure of case) in the case.
