D K Shivakumar
Credit: DH File Photo
With the power tussle talks in Karnataka continuing, notwithstanding the show of "unity" by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar after two breakfast meetings, the former left for Delhi on Wednesday to "attend a wedding".
With speculation rife about his meeting with the Congress high command, Shivakumar told reporters in Bengaluru, "There is nothing political about my Delhi visit."
He said he would return on Thursday for the Cabinet meeting after attending the wedding and a couple of meetings.
The KPCC president said he would also oversee arrangement for the Congress rally on 'vote chori' (vote theft) to be held on December 14 at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi.
"We need at least 300 people from every district of Karnataka to visit the programme. I have asked all the district Ministers and MLAs to monitor that and take the party cadres to the vote-chori programme," he said.
Earlier in the day, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, who arrived in Mangaluru to attend a programme with Siddaramaiah, was greeted with chants of "DK-DK" by the supporters of the KPCC president.
When asked about this, Shivakumar said, "This is normal. Some people chant Modi-Modi, others chant DK-DK, others chant Rahul-Rahul, and others chant Siddu-Siddu. There is nothing wrong in it. People just show their love and affection..."
Meanwhile, speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of the programme he attended along with Venugopal in Mangaluru, Siddaramaiah reiterated that he would go Delhi if called by the high command.
When asked about Shivakumar visiting Delhi, the Chief Minister said he would go only if he was called by the high command.
This came a day after Siddaramaiah said Shivakumar would head the government “when the high command decides”.
The Chief Minister said this after having breakfast at Shivakumar’s residence in what was another show of bonhomie between the two leaders, which the Congress high command wanted to conceal their leadership tussle.
“Shivakumar and I have always been united. We are like brothers working in the same party and under the same ideology. For 2028, too, we will work together and bring the party to power,” Siddaramaiah told reporters on Tuesday.
This was their second breakfast meeting. On November 29, Siddaramaiah hosted Shivakumar for breakfast on instructions from Venugopal. “Both of us have decided to listen to whatever the high command decides, especially Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge,” Siddaramaiah said.