CAA rally, Cabinet expansion: Amit Shah on two-day tour to Karnataka

Shah, on Saturday afternoon, will address a rally at Hubballi on CAA.

According to sources, during his visit to the state, the BJP president might discuss Karnataka Cabinet expansion with Yediyurappa. The Cabinet expansion, is pending since more than a month. Twelve former MLAs, who won the by-elections on the BJP ticket were very eager to join the Cabinet berths, as promised by the Chief Minister.

Yediyurappa is waiting for a "green signal" from the higher ups to expand his Cabinet, sources said.

Shah's visit as a Home Minister also hold a significance as Karnataka made headlines last month for state-wide anti-CAA protest and violence in Mangaluru where two people were killed in alleged police firing. Ironically, Mangaluru is represented by state BJP president Nalin Kumar Kateel.

Recently, City Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao alleged that six Socialist Democratic Party of India (SDPI) members were involved in hatching a plan to eliminate important BJP leaders, including Lok Sabha member Tejaswi Surya.

Surya now wants the Centre and State government to immediately ban SDPI for their alleged anti-national activities.

"I will meet Mr Shah and appeal to him to take immediate steps to ban SDPI and also appeal to Chief Minister Yediyurappa to do the needful," he said.

"Siddaramaiah, during his tenure as Chief Minister, encouraged the organisation by withdrawing all the criminal cases pending against SDPI leaders," Surya alleged.