Congress High Command Will Decide on Karnataka Leadership Change
As speculations over chief minister change in Karnataka refuse to end, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday said that whatever happens, the party top leadership will decide and has nothing to say right now. The AICC chief announced this a day after his over an hour-long meeting with chief minister Siddaramaiah here.
“I have nothing to say about the developments. So you (media) standing here is a waste of time and I feel bad too. Whatever it is, the high command will do it. You don’t need to worry about it any further,” Kharge told reporters outside his home here.
After the Congress government reached half-way of its five-year term on November 20, the power struggle within the ruling party has intensified amid speculations about a change of chief minister in the state.
Talking to reporters after meeting Kharge last night, the second meeting between the duo in less than a week, Siddaramaiah said while replying to a question on clarity on tenure as the CM said, he will abide by the decision of the high command and everyone else should too.
But he had termed the buzz around the leadership change as speculation and media creation. The CM’s meeting with the AICC chief had come after some MLAs supporting Shivakumar went to Delhi and met Kharge as the Congress government completed 2.5 years in office on November 20.
However, Shivakumar said he was not aware that the legislators had gone to Delhi to meet Kharge. On Sunday, Ministers HC Mahadevappa and K Venkatesh, who is considered close to CM Siddaramaiah, met at Kharge’s house. Party sources said that while Siddaramaiah was pushing for a change in the cabinet, Shivakumar wanted the party to decide on the leadership change first.
According to some party insiders, if the Congress high command approves the cabinet reshuffle, it will signal that incumbent chief minister Siddaramaiah will complete his entire five-year term, thus eliminating Shivakumar’s chances of occupying the coveted post.
There was a tight competition between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar for the chief minister’s post after the Assembly election results were declared in May 2023 and the Congress managed to convince the latter and made him the Deputy CM.
At that time, there were some reports that a compromise had been reached on the basis of the “rotating prime minister formula” under which Shivakumar would become the CM after two and a half years, but these were not officially confirmed by the party.
