Published Aug 05, 2026 | 8:40 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 05, 2026 | 8:40 PM
Yashwantraya Gowda Patil
Synopsis: The Congress leadership has moved swiftly to contain dissent triggered by the Karnataka cabinet expansion, with Indi MLA Yashavanthrayagouda Patil withdrawing his resignation after intervention from senior leaders. As resentment simmers among overlooked legislators, the party is holding outreach meetings to prevent the discontent from escalating into a wider political crisis.
The Congress leadership has moved swiftly to contain dissent triggered by the Karnataka cabinet expansion, with Indi MLA Yashavanthrayagouda Patil withdrawing his resignation on Wednesday after intervention from senior leaders. As resentment simmers among overlooked legislators, the party is holding outreach meetings to prevent the discontent from escalating into a wider political crisis.
“I have withdrawn my resignation after discussions with the party leadership. I will abide by the decision of the high command,” Patil said, according to reports.
Patil had emerged as the face of the revolt after formally submitting his resignation to the Deputy Speaker on Monday, claiming he had been dropped from the final list of ministers at the last minute. His decision to withdraw the resignation marks the first major breakthrough for the Congress high command in its efforts to contain the post-expansion unrest.
The development comes as the party has stepped up its outreach to pacify legislators who were left out of the cabinet.
On Wednesday, AICC General Secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala, along with Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Cabinet Ministers Zameer Ahmed Khan and HC Balakrishna, visited the residence of senior Congress MLA M Krishnappa and his son, Govindarajanagar MLA Priya Krishna, both of whom had expressed strong disappointment over being overlooked during the reshuffle.
According to party sources, the father-son duo conveyed their frustration at being denied representation despite their political influence in Bengaluru.
Also Read: PTI apologises to Priyank Kharge for ‘misinterpreting’ his remarks; ‘damage already done,’ he says
While Patil has withdrawn his resignation, several other Congress legislators continue to express dissatisfaction in different ways.
Sagar MLA Belur Gopalakrishna, who had publicly announced his intention to resign alongside Patil and claimed that five to 10 other MLAs were prepared to follow suit, has since backed away from the threat. However, he had not formally submitted his resignation.
In Raichur, Rural MLA Basanagouda Daddal resigned as Chairman of the Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation in protest against the cabinet expansion. Daddal, however, has not resigned as an MLA, indicating that his protest remains limited to his organisational post.
Similarly, Gubbi MLA SR Srinivas resigned as Chairman of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), citing the lack of ministerial representation for communities and regions that had remained loyal to the Congress.
Discontent has also surfaced in Kolar district, where all four Congress MLAs voiced disappointment after the district failed to secure representation in the new cabinet. Bangarpet MLA SN Narayanaswamy, Malur MLA KY Nanjegowda, Kolar MLA Kottur Manjunath, and KGF MLA Rupakala Shashidhar jointly expressed their dissatisfaction and warned of political action if the district’s concerns continued to be ignored.
Chikkaballapur MLA Subba Reddy also publicly criticised the cabinet formation, lamenting that Bagepalli had not received a ministerial berth since Independence.
Speaking to reporters, she said she had remained loyal to the Congress despite being approached by the BJP during Operation Kamala and expressed disappointment that the party had failed to recognise her loyalty. However, she clarified that she had no intention of resigning and instead urged the government to allocate more funds for her constituency.
“If I had gone on the wrong path during Operation Kamala, I would have become a minister. But my conscience did not permit it. I believed that if I remained loyal to the party, it would recognise that loyalty. But the party has not shown me the same loyalty,” she told PTI.
