CM DK Shivakumar with Rahul Gandhi
DK Shivakumar was sworn in as the 25th Chief Minister of Karnataka on Wednesday, with G Parameshwara taking oath as the Deputy Chief Minister. Senior Congress leaders KH Muniyappa, KJ George, and MB Patil were among the ministers inducted into the Cabinet.Shivakumar took the oath in the name of Veera Gangadhara Ajja, the deity he worships, and held a copy of the Constitution while taking the oath of office and secrecy.In the first round of Cabinet formation, Shivakumar appears to have struck a balance across caste groups, regions, seniority, and experience. Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, a prominent Dalit leader, took oath in the name of Dr BR Ambedkar. Among the ministers sworn in, KH Muniyappa and Priyank Kharge represent the Scheduled Castes, MB Patil and Eshwar Khandre are from the Lingayat community, Ramalinga Reddy represents the OBC community, Satish Jarkiholi the Scheduled Tribes, Krishna Byre Gowda the Vokkaliga community, while Yathindra Siddaramaiah and Byrathi Suresh are seen as representing the influential Kuruba community.Political observers note that the composition of the Cabinet reflects an attempt to balance regional aspirations, caste equations, senior leaders and younger faces. However, the absence of women ministers in the first list has drawn attention.“The Chief Minister has managed to strike a balance in terms of region, caste, seniority, new faces and experience in the Cabinet. However, there is no representation for women, which is something to watch for in the next round of Cabinet expansion,” said Sandeep Shastri, Director (Academics), Nitte Education Trust.Senior leaders present at the swearing-in ceremony included Mallikarjun Kharge, President of the Indian National Congress; Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha; KC Venugopal, General Secretary of the All India Congress Committee (AICC); and Randeep Singh Surjewala, AICC General Secretary. Religious leaders were also present at the ceremony.Taking to X, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated DK Shivakumar on taking oath as the Chief Minister of Karnataka and said that the Centre would work closely with the Karnataka government for the welfare of the people.The swearing-in ceremony marks the beginning of a new chapter for Karnataka under Shivakumar’s leadership. The new Chief Minister, popularly known as the “Kanakapura Bande,” (Rock of Kanakapura) faces the challenge of steering the state towards the 2028 Assembly elections while addressing governance issues that had been overshadowed by prolonged political and power tussles within the state.(With inputs from BL intern Siddhi Patil)Published on June 3, 2026
