Bengaluru, June 4 -- Senior Congress leader and Gadag MLA HK Patil has been left out of the first phase of the new Karnataka Cabinet headed by DK Shivakumar, triggering speculation over the veteran legislator's role in the new dispensation.
Patil, who held the Law and Parliamentary Affairs portfolio in the outgoing government and is regarded as one of the senior-most Congress leaders from north Karnataka, did not find a place among the ministers sworn in during the initial Cabinet formation on Wednesday.
Party insiders indicated that regional, caste and factional considerations played a key role in the first round of inductions, with several aspirants from different regions competing for limited berths. The Cabinet is expected to be expan...