As the power tussle between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D.K. Shivakumar intensified in Karnataka, the Congress high command is expected to convene a meeting soon to resolve the issue amicably.
Talking to reporters in Bengaluru on Thursday, party president Mallikarjun Kharge said a collective decision would be made after the meeting, in which both leaders would be present.
"I will call everyone and have a discussion. Rahul Gandhi and other members will be present at the meeting. Both the chief minister and the Deputy CM will also be present. The decision will be made after a discussion with all of these leaders,” he said, adding that the entire high command team would be part of the decision-making process.
Meanwhile, Siddaramaiah reportedly held a meeting with senior ministers and leaders considered close to him, including Home Minister G. Parameshwara, Satish Jarkiholi, H.C. Mahdevappa, K. Venkatesh and K.N. Rajanna at his residence in Bengaluru.
Shivakumar, who is locked in a power tussle with the chief minister, claimed on Wednesday that the party is united and its focus is on the upcoming elections.
"Our goal is to win Karnataka in 2028 and to win at the national level in 2029, and to make Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister. We will work towards this goal,” he said.
However, hours later, the KPCC chief sent a cryptic message to Siddaramaiah and the party's central leadership, saying that keeping a promise is a big power move.
"There is a saying that word power is world power, which means that for us to keep our promise is one of the biggest powers in the world,” he said—a remark which is seen as a veiled reference to the purported power-sharing agreement between him and Siddaramaiah.
Media reports and Shivakumar's loyalists claim that, as per the agreement made in 2023, he would be made the chief minister after two and a half years. Not surprisingly, the buzz over leadership change intensified after the Congress government completed the halfway mark of its five-year tenure on November 20.
However, there seem to be more contenders to the CM post, with Parameshwara recently suggesting that he is also in the race in the event of a leadership change.
"I'm always in the race, it is not a big issue. I was the Pradesh Congress Committee President in 2013. We brought the Congress government to power. I never claimed credit for it solely. I lost in that poll. Had I won, what would have happened, I don't know," Parameshwara said.
Senior MLA and former minister K.N. Rajanna said that though he backed Siddaramaiah to continue, Parameshwara could be the second option.
Jarkiholi, the Public Works Minister, who was also considered to be a contender for the top post, has come out in support of Siddaramaiah, saying he has asked the high command to clear the air at the earliest on the issue of leadership.
"We (Congress) will require CM Siddaramaiah's leadership, his service and guidance even after he retires from active politics,” he said on Wednesday.