D K Shivakumar emerges as front-runner to replace Siddaramaiah as Karnataka Chief Minister

Congress Legislature Party meeting is likely to be held on Friday to formally elect the new leader.

New Delhi: The Congress high command has asked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to step down, with Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar emerging as the clear front-runner to succeed him, party sources said.

Though names of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Home Minister G Parameshwara — both Dalit leaders — were also doing the rounds, the party leadership finally decided in favour of Shivakumar as the next Chief Minister, sources told DH.

Shivakumar, who also heads the Karnataka Congress unit, enjoys the backing of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

The decision is understood to honour the power-sharing arrangement between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections. The party has chosen to adhere to the spirit of the two-and-a-half-year power-sharing pact.

Shivakumar, who attended the crucial meeting convened by the Congress top brass in Delhi on Tuesday, changed his tour plan and will be returning to Bengaluru on Thursday early morning. He had originally planned to return later in the afternoon on Wednesday.

A Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting is likely to be held on Friday to formally elect the new leader.

Congress general secretary (Karnataka in-charge) Randeep Surjewala is also heading to Bengaluru to oversee a smooth transition.

On Tuesday, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi held a closed-door meeting with Shivakumar. Rahul also met Siddaramaiah and asked him to step down.

While Siddaramaiah sought time to consult his close associates, the high command is said to have agreed.

The party initially expected Siddaramaiah to resign after the completion of Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council elections on June 18.

After meeting the Congress high command, Siddaramaiah drove straight to the residence of Energy Minister K J George in Delhi and held discussions with his close ministerial colleagues, including George, Social Welfare Minister H C Mahadevappa, Urban Development Minister Byrathi Suresh, and Home Minister G Parameshwara. In the meeting, Siddaramaiah indicated that he would resign shortly without waiting for completion of Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council elections.

"From the very beginning, I have been saying that I would resign whenever Rahul asked me to. Now that Rahul has asked me to step down, I will quit immediately," Siddaramaiah told his ministerial colleagues during the meeting at George's residence, sources said.