Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Nov 22: Karnataka chief minister, Siddaramaiah, who has been dilly-dallying on the issue of nominating heads for state-run corporations and boards for fear of ruffling the feathers of disgruntled leaders, has, in consultation with Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, G Parameshwar, finalized list of chosen leaders for these posts.

A list of 95 nominations to important boards and corporations has already been handed over to the party high command on Friday November 21. National president of the Congress, Sonia Gandhi, is expected to give her assent to these names in a couple of days, fulfilling the aspirations of 95 power-hungry politicians, who have been lobbying hard and vying with other leaders for these seats.

However, it is gathered that the term of these heads has been truncated to 18 months, as a compromise formula to accommodate maximum number of candidates. On expiry of the first 18 months, the present candidates will have to leave their posts to make room for fresh faces to be nominated by the party leadership again. The Congress government in the state has 42 more months of tenure, and during the last six months, everyone will be busy will elections. Therefore, the formula worked out presently is to share the next three years on prorata basis.

It is gathered that in tune with the high command directive, people who have been loyal to the party since long, and have worked in organizational positions successfully, have been given preference. Parameshwar said that the list includes 12 KPCC ffice bearers, six district Congress presidents, and leaders belonging to other backward castes. Current legislators, close relatives of leading Congressmen, those who fought in the last assembly election and tasted defeat, and those who recently migrated to the party have been left out as the central leadership's stand on these candidates remained rigid, it is gathered.

The list it is said, has tried to strike a balance between all the castes and categories of leaders. Digvijay Singh and Rahul Gandhi reportedly expressed their approval for this list.

It is said that a list of about 1,500 members of boards and corporations has also been drawn. These members will be absorbed in about two weeks time.