Karnataka Congress churn: Amid tussle with Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar delivers a googly

He went on to say, “Kharge is an asset to the nation and the state. I will abide by any decision that the party takes. He resigned at midnight as the Opposition leader. From a block leader, he has become the national president of the Congress. This can happen only in the Congress. I will work with happiness if he is made the CM.”

In an interview to The Indian Express on Friday, Siddaramaiah sidestepped the CM question, saying, “If anybody wants to become CM, there is nothing wrong with it. Ultimately, newly elected MLAs will choose a leader of the Legislature Party, after which the high command will take a decision. This is a democratic system.”

Kharge becoming the CM is a remote possibility on account of his current responsibilities as the All India Congress Committee (AICC) chief. The veteran leader has twice been in contention for the top job in the state. In 2008, the opportunity did not come his way as the Congress lost the polls. In 2013, the Congress high command went with Siddaramaiah as it wanted an Other Backward Classes (OBC) face for the CM’s post. Kharge stands an outside chance this time as the party is reportedly discussing the appointment of a Dalit CM in Karnataka, which has never had one, to send out a signal ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The conflict between Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah was on display during negotiations on poll tickets. While Siddaramaiah had a good say in the choice of candidates across the state, Shivakumar wielded his influence in conversations on south Karnataka. Kharge was instrumental in ticket allocation for the Hyderabad-Karnataka region that, on his insistence, received special development category status under article 371(J) of the Constitution in 2012 during the tenure of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

Following the announcement of the election date, Kharge had indicated that the Congress would not declare a CM candidate. “It will be decided after the polls. After the polls, the opinion of the elected MLAs will be sought. The high command will decide based on political strategies as to who should become (the CM). The choice of the CM is never decided before the polls because it leads to infighting,” Kharge said last month.

On Saturday, Shivakumar also said the party was working to iron out differences after the announcement of the second list of candidates on April 6. As many as 12 aspirants are threatening to contest rebels. “It is quite normal for dissidence to happen in politics. We are talking to those who have not got tickets. We have not been able to give tickets to everybody. Politics is about sharing and caring,” Shivakumar said.“If we form the government, there will be many posts in the councils, the boards, and corporations. We are asking them to be patient. It is natural for people to be angry since they have been waiting for a few years and new candidates are accommodated.”

The Congress has tried to address the issue of providing social justice to all sections of society, while also relying on surveys, said the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief. “We have not used a box and asked people to vote like the BJP. We have spoken to our people also and we have not relied on survey reports alone. In some cases, we have gone by the social justice yardstick. We have to give tickets to SC right, SC left, minorities, Christians, Jains, OBC, Vokkaligas and Lingayats. We have not been able to back all the communities.”

He also said Lingayats “would get a larger chunk of the seats this time around”. Over the two lists of 166 candidates so far, 43 Lingayats were given tickets on par with the allocations in 2018.

Hitting out at the “frequent” visits of PM Modi to the state, Shivakumar said, “Let the PM come as many times as he wants. Let him stay in Karnataka. The frequent visits of the PM are an indication of the BJP’s weakness in the state. They are trying their best but have also realized that they are going to suffer a loss so they are trying to make up.”

Asked about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Kolar rally getting postponed again, this time to April 16, the Kankapura MLA said, “Rahul Gandhi had stated that he wants to come back to Karnataka and give a speech at the place where a speech he had made earlier has resulted in a case against him. He gave us a date. Since we are still in the middle of deciding the election process and candidates we have asked him to push the program forward by a week. He has agreed.”