Amid suspense over who will be the chief minister of Karnataka, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will hold a crucial meeting with top party leaders at his residence on Monday evening. Former chief minister Siddaramaiah, a strong claimant for the coveted post, has already met Kharge in Delhi while KPCC president D.K. Shivakumar, another front-runner for the post, is likely to reach the national capital at night.
A Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting on Sunday had authorised Kharge to pick the new chief minister. The party stormed back to power in the southern state, winning 135 seats in the 224-member assembly. The party's stupendous victory, however, followed intense lobbying for the chief minister's post between the factions of both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar.
The three central observers deputed by the Congress returned to the national capital on Monday after speaking individually to the newly elected MLAs. PTI reported that the observers are putting together the views expressed by all the newly elected MLAs and will hand over the report to Kharge by late Monday night.
Kharge is likely to hold consultations with top Congress leadership, including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, before arriving at a decision on the chief minister.
On Sunday, high drama unfolded in front of the five-star hotel in Bengaluru where the CLP meeting was held, with supporters of both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar raising slogans projecting their leaders as the next chief minister.
Siddaramaiah is a leader with mass appeal. He has the experience of running a government of full five-year term from 2013-18. Shivakumar has strong organisational capabilities, is considered resourceful and Congress' troubleshooter during tough times and has the backing of the dominant Vokkaliga community, its influential seers and leaders.
On Sunday, prominent Vokkaliga pontiff of Adi Chunchanagiri Nirmalananda Natha Swamiji appealed to the Congress leadership to appoint Shivakumar as the next chief minister of the state.
Shivakumar himself hinted that he is in the chief ministerial race saying he took everyone along and never sought anything for himself. He, however, brushed aside speculations about differences between him and Siddaramaiah.
