A WEEK after assuming power in Karnataka, the Congress on Friday released the list of 24 legislators who will be sworn-in as Ministers to fill up all the vacant ministerial positions. The Cabinet expansion will take place on Saturday noon with their swearing-in ceremony, according to Congress leaders. The Karnataka Government can have 34 ministers. While 10 of them including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his Deputy D K Shivakumar were sworn-in on March 20, the rest will be inducted on Saturday.

The decision was finalised after hours of parleys between Siddaramaih and his Deputy Shivakumar with top Central leaders including AICC General Secretaries K C Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi gave their final nod to the list which balances caste and regional equations in the southern state. Earlier, the two Karnataka leaders also met Sonia Gandhi, for the first time after Government formation in the state. Differences between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar had emerged over names of probable Ministers but these were sorted out during the discussions, the sources said.