Bengaluru: Karnataka Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Sunday hinted that the Cabinet expansion may take place soon.

Speaking to reporters here, he indicated that the expansion could happen before August.

When asked about the timeline for inducting new ministers, Reddy, who holds the water resources portfolio, said the exercise could take place soon, as the full Council of Ministers needed to be in place before the Assembly session.

“It could happen any time, perhaps soon. The Assembly session is in August. The entire Cabinet should be in place before the session begins, as around 20 portfolios are currently being held by Chief Minister D K Shivakumar. It should happen soon,” he said.

The Karnataka Cabinet currently has 14 ministers, including the CM, though the state can have up to 34 ministers.

Hectic lobbying is underway among MLAs for ministerial berths, with some of them recently visiting Delhi to press their claims, Congress sources said.