Aland MLA B.R. Patil has said he is disappointed at being denied a berth in the State Cabinet expansion, but is not disheartened

In a press release issued here on Wednesday (August 5, 2026), Mr. Patil thanked party workers and supporters who had expressed disappointment over his exclusion from the Cabinet.

He stated that he had spent the past five decades in public life, guided by the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi, Ram Manohar Lohia, Jayaprakash Narayan, and B.R. Ambedkar, and had consistently worked towards social justice and gender equality, while fighting against caste discrimination, superstition, poverty, unemployment, and inequality.

Mr Patil said he had served four terms as an MLA, in addition to serving as an MLC, Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council, and Vice-Chairman of the Karnataka State Policy and Planning Commission. He also highlighted his participation in farmers’, labour, environmental, Dalit and AHINDA movements, as well as protests against the CAA-NRC, the farm laws, the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise and the alleged NEET paper leak.

Referring to the 2023 Assembly election, Mr. Patil said he had exposed alleged electoral roll irregularities in the Aland Assembly constituency and shared the information with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, making it a national issue that strengthened the party’s campaign.

“After dedicating my public life to the values of social justice and democracy, I leave it to the people of Karnataka to judge whether it was right to exclude me from the Cabinet,” Mr Patil expressed.

Published - August 05, 2026 06:27 pm IST