After meet with Siddaramaiah & Shivakumar, Cong says RS polls discussed, not change of guard
Bengaluru: Legislators flocked to Delhi to pledge support, power breakfast meetings dominated the political circuit, and speculation ran rife.
The national capital on Tuesday witnessed a high-stakes Karnataka leadership battle playing out before the Congress high command, amid mounting buzz about possible resolution to the ongoing leadership tussle between Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D.K. Shivakumar.
The two leaders were both summoned to Delhi by the party’s central leadership, stoking every possible conjecture on the contentious topic.
K.C.Venugopal, the General Secretary (Organisation) of the All India Congress Committee (AICC), said that the nearly six-hour-long discussions were limited to the upcoming Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council polls in the state, and nothing else.
Flanked by smiling Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar on either side, Venugopal told reporters, “Today, the entire discussion is only concentrated on the coming Rajya Sabha elections and (legislative) council elections for Karnataka. Whatever speculation you (media) people are doing, that is only speculation, there is no reality at all.”
Four Rajya Sabha seats from Karnataka, including the one currently held by Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge, are set to go to polls on June 18. Elections to seven Karnataka Legislative Council seats will also be held the same day.
Also Read: DK says Siddaramaiah to be Karnataka CM for 5 yrs. Why Congress high command can’t replace him
One-on-one meeting
Venugopal’s clarification, however, proved inadequate in explaining the lengthy nature of these intense personal meetings, including one-on-one with both leaders.
With just a handful of states under its control, the Congress is treading cautiously not to rock one of its strongest states by rushing any decision on a change in leadership.
This is especially true with polls for Greater Bengaluru Authority (Bengaluru city corporation), Zilla and Taluk Panchayat elections likely to be held later this year and with an eye on the 2028 assembly polls.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
Also Read: Feud over Karnataka CM post far from over: Siddaramaiah gives spin to Shivakumar’s cryptic post
