Shettar likely to become Karnataka Chief Minister

New Delhi.  After relenting to pressure from the BS Yeddyurappa faction, BJP appears set to replace Karnataka chief minister Sadanand Gowda with Lingayat leader Jagadish Shettar and an announcement is expected within a week.
“A decision from the high command is likely to be conveyed within a week. We have left everything to the party leadership now. Their decision will be acceptable to us,” Shettar, who holds the Rural Development portfolio, told this news agency.
Sources said BJP president Nitin Gadkari has come around to the view that Shettar, a Yeddyurappa loyalist, should be the next chief minister.
The decision will have to be ratified by the BJP Parliamentary Board, the highest decision-making body of the party, but most members are in agreement on the issue in view of the damage caused by constant threats from dissidents in the last four years.
Though the party had earlier indicated that the leadership change was expected to take place after the July 19 Presidential poll, the sources said this has been advanced by a few days in view of the Karnataka Assembly session commencing on July 16.
The BJP Parliamentary Board, which has to ratify the leadership change, is unlikely to meet before Saturday. It is understood that senior party leader LK Advani was in favour of fresh elections in the state instead of giving in to Yeddyurappa, who is facing a CBI probe in a mining case.
However, BJP fears losing the votes of the powerful Lingayat community in the elections next year. Yeddyurappa, who earlier wanted to be reinstated as chief minister, finally conceded that the party would not be able to do so till he was cleared of all charges and started demanding that Gowda be replaced with Shettar. However, the rebels were not successful in convincing BJP veteran LK Advani.