Bommai to decide on attending WEF's annual meet

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday said he will soon take a call on his visit to Swiss ski resort town of Davos, to take part in World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting.

He said he will have to decide on the days and schedule considering the upcoming Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council polls, also the possibility of local body polls being announced.

”I will decide regarding the Davos visit today. I’m one among the two Chief Ministers who have got invitation for Davos, it is an important event, but as these elections have come now, for how many days I should go, when to go, I will decide,” Bommai told reporters in response to a question.

Bommai and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jaganmohan Reddy are expected to be in Davos for the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2022 from May 22-26, while Maharashtra minister and chief minister Uddhav Thackeray’s son Aaditya Thackeray as also Telangana minister and the state chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao’s son K T Rama Rao would be there.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and some senior union ministers are also expected to participate in the WEF’s Davos summit, one of the most high-profile congregations of the world leaders globally, but there has been no official announcement so far regarding their participation.

Bommai today will be participating in the Karnataka BJP core committee meeting.

”Our party leaders- our in charge (General Secretary) Arun Singh, Santosh ji (National General Secretary)- are coming for the core committee meeting where Yediyurappa, Sadananda Gowda, Jagadish Shettar (former CMs) and other senior leaders will be present,” Bommai said.

Several issues including the political situation, also strategy and candidates for Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council polls will be discussed at the core committee meeting, he said.

Biennial elections to four Rajya Sabha seats from Karnataka and two each graduates’ and teachers’ constituencies of the state Legislative Council will be held on June 10 and 13 respectively.

Also, biennial Election to the Karnataka Legislative Council by the members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) will be held on June three.

Responding to a question about any communication from Union Home Minister Amit Shah regarding cabinet expansion or rejig as he had said BJP central leaders will decide and inform in a couple of days, Bommai asked, ”can you count like that (exactly) in politics?”

The Chief Minister who on Wednesday had met Shah in Delhi to discuss the much-awaited expansion or rejig of his Cabinet had said that the BJP central leadership would communicate its decision in this regard after discussions, and that ”anything may happen at any time.”