NEW DELHI: The standoff between Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar over the chief ministerial post in Karnataka seems to have entered its climax as Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday acknowledged the situation, saying that “medicine” will be given to resolve the issue.As soon as the Congress government in Karnataka completed its halfway mark on November 20, reports quoting Congress sources suggested that MLAs and MLCs from Shivakumar’s faction had camped in Delhi to push the party high command to make him the next chief minister.
DK Shivakumar added to the speculations after he claimed that there had indeed been a “secret deal” — a confidential understanding on leadership transition among five-six leaders soon after Congress won a landslide in the 2023 elections.The deputy chief minister made the first reference to the power pact but stopped short of divulging more details. “This is confidential. I don’t want to speak publicly on this,” he said.‘Will give medicine when required’On the ongoing political developments in the state, Kharge played down the “internal conflict” within the party and said that the “high command” will sit together and deliberate on the issue.“Only the people there can say what the government is doing. But I would like to say that we will resolve such issues,” Kharge said.“People in the high command — Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and I — will sit together and deliberate on this… We will give the medicine when required,” he added.This was the first acknowledgment by Kharge that there is indeed a power struggle between Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar in Karnataka.Siddaramaiah wants ‘swift decision’Karnataka minister Satish Jarkiholi said chief minister Siddaramaiah has asked the Congress high command to take an early call on the question of leadership change in the state.Jarkiholi, who handles the public works portfolio, told reporters that he plans to seek an appointment with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to discuss the matter.He said the issue of succession must be settled by the party’s national leadership and revealed that Siddaramaiah too prefers a swift decision.“When the CM says it, then seniors in the party should take note of it,” he stated. However, he maintained that no internal discussions had taken place among MLAs on a possible leadership shift. “There is no discussion about leadership change in the party. Once it comes up then we will discuss, but there is no discussion about it in the party right now,” Jarkiholi said.‘No groups in the party’A day after raising eyebrows with his remarks, DK Shivakumar on Wednesday changed tune, claiming that Congress is united and focused on the 2028 assembly and 2029 Lok Sabha elections.“Whatever is there, party issues, we will discuss within four walls. I will not discuss any political issues in the media,” the deputy chief minister said.He also denied any confusion or existence of factions within the party and said, “No one should demand anything. There are no groups in the party; there is only one group, that is the Congress. Our group has 140 MLAs.”Priyank Kharge passes Rahul’s message to Siddaramaiah, DKSAdditionally, Karnataka minister and Kharge’s son Priyank Kharge held discussions with senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on the leadership change issue in the state.According to reports, Priyank has conveyed Rahul’s message to both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, and they are likely to be called to New Delhi soon for a meeting aimed at resolving the matter.“Discussions are in the media. Will I meet Mohan Bhagwat (RSS chief) if not Rahul Gandhi? Will I report to Keshava Krupa (RSS state headquarters) without reporting to the CM and deputy CM on my meeting? Rahul Gandhi was invited for the Bengaluru Tech Summit; he couldn’t come. I had sought his time to show our Artificial Intelligence Personal Computer,” Kharge said in response to a question.Mallikarjun Kharge in CM race?Meanwhile, a section of Congress leaders also pitched Mallikarjun Kharge’s name for the chief minister post amid the “leadership tussle”.Minister Shivananda Patil had described Mallikarjun Kharge as the “most eligible person” for the CM post. “I had committed a mistake once by not voting for him. I accept it today,” he said.State home minister G Parameshwara also said that if the party high command decides, everyone would accept Kharge as the chief minister.The issue of a Dalit chief minister has long been debated within Congress, with senior Dalit leaders including Parameshwara and Mahadevappa speaking on the matter in the past.Some prominent Dalit leaders are reportedly planning to push for a “Dalit CM” before the high command in the event of a change in state leadership, PTI reported.News agency PTI cited sources and claimed that Kharge, a Dalit stalwart in the party, lost the chance to become chief minister thrice — in 1999 to S M Krishna, in 2004 to Dharam Singh, and in 2013 to Siddaramaiah.However, Kharge’s son Priyank dismissed the speculations, calling them “irrelevant”.“Whenever elections happen here (in Karnataka), he is in the race to become the CM, and whenever Parliamentary elections happen, he is in the race to become the PM. Such discussions are irrelevant now,” Priyank said.
