Bengaluru, August 5, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
A coalition of 30 women’s organisations and feminist groups in Karnataka has criticised the exclusion of women from the newly expanded state Cabinet, urging Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar to take immediate steps to ensure women’s representation in the Council of Ministers.
Under the banner of Naveddu Nilladiddare, Karnataka, the groups issued an open letter titled “Is This No State for Women?”, describing the all-male Cabinet as a deliberate political decision rather than an oversight.
The organisations said they had raised similar concerns when the first Cabinet under Shivakumar was formed without any woman minister and had expected the expansion to correct the imbalance. However, they said the latest changes have continued the exclusion of women from the state’s top decision-making body.
Highlighting women’s role in Karnataka’s electorate, the groups said women account for nearly half of the state’s voters and played a significant role in the Congress victory in the 2023 Assembly elections. They pointed out that the party won more than half of the 52 constituencies where women voters outnumbered men.
The organisations said the Cabinet composition was inconsistent with the Congress party’s stated commitment to women’s empowerment, including its support for the Women’s Reservation Act and its organisational pledge to provide 33 per cent representation to women.
They noted that women are already holding leadership roles in panchayats, municipalities, self-help groups, trade unions, civil society organisations, academic institutions and businesses, but remain absent from the state’s highest executive decision-making forum.
The letter argued that denying women representation in the Cabinet goes against constitutional principles of equality, dignity and equal opportunity while reinforcing patriarchal barriers in politics.
The groups also referred to reports that Congress MLC Gayathri Shanthegowda was considered for a ministerial position before being dropped from the final list, saying such developments reflected the treatment of women’s leadership as secondary during political negotiations.
Recalling Shivakumar’s earlier Naa Nayaki initiative aimed at promoting women’s leadership, the organisations said the message now appeared to have shifted towards Naa Nayaka, with leadership being reserved for men.
They demanded the immediate inclusion of capable women in the Cabinet and said gender equality must be reflected in actual political representation rather than remaining a campaign promise.
The open letter has been supported by 30 organisations, including women’s groups, labour unions, transgender and intersex collectives, gender rights bodies and other civil society organisations from across Karnataka.
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