Lead party in next polls to become CM, don't eye top post now, Minister Rajanna tells DKS

Minister K N Rajanna's apparent dig comes in the backdrop of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's recent dinner with select Dalit and ST Cabinet colleagues that created a buzz within the ruling Congress amid speculation about a possible change of guard in the state.

Bengaluru: Power tussle in the ruling Congress escalated on Friday with Cooperation Minister K N Rajanna asking Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar to quit aspiring to become the chief minister right now while also suggesting discontinuing him as the party president.

Rajanna is a close aide of CM Siddaramaiah. His statement has made it clear that Siddaramaiah’s followers are in no mood to accept Shivakumar at the helm. Also, the message is that he should not hold two positions -- deputy CM and Karnataka Congress president -- in keeping with the party’s ‘one man, one post’ policy.

“The (2023) election was fought under the leadership of Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar. We won 138 seats. The high command chose Siddaramaiah as the Congress Legislature Party leader,” Rajanna said. “Shivakumar can lead Congress into the next election and become the chief minister for a full five years. Why fight for a term of two-and-a-half years now?”

Rajanna validated Shivakumar’s desire to become the CM. “It is not wrong,” he said. “But this is my advice to him: why struggle to become CM for two-and-a-half years? Why not five years?”

This also alludes to a power-sharing agreement between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar. In fact, Shivakumar ruffled some feathers when he claimed “there is some understanding” on power-sharing in an interview to a private news channel.

It is said that Siddaramaiah’s followers do not want him to yield to Shivakumar.

“I am not aware of any deal on changing the CM after two-and-a-half years. Siddaramaiah will be CM for the entire term,” Industries Minister M B Patil said.

A fresh bout of speculation started after Siddaramaiah’s January 2 dinner with a few SC/ST ministers. Thereafter, Shivakumar held a meeting with AICC general secretary K C Venugopal. Then, a dinner meet-up of SC/ST leaders scheduled on January 8 was “postponed” at the behest of the high command.

“(Shivakumar) did not apply the brakes on the meeting. It is just that AICC leaders wanted to attend it. So, it was postponed,” IT/BT Minister Priyank Kharge said.

Rajanna pushed the envelope on the appointment of a new party president. He said the party made three announcements after the 2023 elections.

“Siddaramaiah will be the CM, Shivakumar will be the lone deputy CM and Shivakumar will continue as president till the Parliament elections," he said, quoting Venugopal. "Is it wrong to ask the party to act as per this?”