A day after Congress registered a thumping victory in Karnataka, the party will hold its crucial Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Sunday.
AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala said the meeting will be held at 5.30 pm on Sunday and all MLAs will take part in it. The Congress already instructed the new members to arrive in Bengaluru on Saturday itself.
Now that the party has gained absolute majority in the state winning 136 seats, all eyes will be on who is the new chief minister. The leading contenders for the top post are former chief minister and Kuruba strongman Siddaramaiah (75) and KPCC chief and Vokkaliga strongman D.K. Shivakumar (60).
While Siddaramaiah is a mass leader who holds sway over the ‘Ahinda’ (minorities, backward classes and Dalits) vote bank of the Congress, Shivakumar the go-to man of the Gandhi family, who has bailed out his party at times of crises (shielding the Congress MLAs from being "poached" thrice) and has strived to strengthen the party at the grassroots ever since his elevation as the party chief in July 2020.
Meanwhile, there are speculations that the party may go for a vote to elect the new chief minister as it did in Himachal Pradesh. All MLAs will reportedly be asked to vote for their choice of the chief minister. The election will be overseen by AICC observers.
The other possibility is to bring about a power-sharing pact wherein both will get to be the leader for a certain period.
Poster war
The factional feud in Karnataka Congress seems to be rearing its head with posters declaring DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah as "CMs" springing up in the state. While supporters of Siddaramaiah put up a poster outside his residence in Bengaluru, referring to him as "the next CM of Karnataka," Shivakumar's supporters too have erected banners outside his residence in Bengaluru, demanding he be declared as "CM" of the state.
Bommai resigns
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai submitted his resignation to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot on Saturday night after BJP's defeat in the Assembly polls.
The Governor has accepted the resignation, an official release said. "We respectfully accept the decision of the people. I take the responsibility of the defeat," Bommai told reporters after the verdict was out.
"This time despite getting more than 36 per cent votes, we have got less number of seats. Analysis is going on, but defeat is a defeat. In the party, we will do a detailed analysis of the results, and rectify wherever required," he added.
The Congress registered a thumping win in Karnataka ousting the BJP from the state following the Assembly polls. The saffron party also lost its lone state in the south in the elections.
