‘Good luck,’ says DK Shivakumar as Siddaramaiah expresses confidence in completing full term in office

Bengaluru: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday wished Chief Minister Siddaramaiah "good luck" after the latter expressed confidence about completing a full five-year term in office.

Siddaramaiah earlier in the day said he was confident of serving the full term as chief minister, while maintaining that the decision would ultimately rest with the Congress high command.

Responding to a question on Siddaramaiah’s remarks, Shivakumar told reporters, "Let good things happen. I wish him all the best. Good luck." Asked whether the chief minister’s statement could lead to confusion, Shivakumar said, "You (the media) are creating confusion. We don’t have any confusion. You have confusion. I wish him all the best, good luck." Shivakumar also congratulated Siddaramaiah, who on Tuesday equalled the record of Devaraj Urs as the longest-serving chief minister of Karnataka.

In his second term as chief minister, Siddaramaiah completed 2,792 days in office, matching Urs’ record, and is set to surpass it on January 7.

On the milestone, Shivakumar said, "I wish him success. May God bless him. I pray that God gives him good health and the opportunity to serve the people." The power tussle within the ruling Congress has intensified amid speculation over a possible change in leadership, after the government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20.

The speculation was fuelled by reports of a "power-sharing" arrangement between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar at the time of the Congress government’s formation in 2023.