All does not seem to be well in Karnataka where the power tussle between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Pradesh Congress Chief and Deputy CM, D.K. Shivakumar appears to have once again resurfaced. A few MLAs owing allegiance to Shivakumar are believed to have informed the high command that the time for the transition had come, and there should be a change in the leadership that would be in the overall interest of the party.
In the background of this new round of confrontation is the unwritten agreement at the time of swearing in of the government in 2023 that the CM’s post would be rotational; the first two and a half years for Siddaramaiah and the remaining period for DK. Although, no Congress leader is willing to confirm this pact on record, yet this impression persists, and therefore it is not surprising at all, that the issue has again cropped up.
On their part, both Siddu and DK, as the two are generally referred to, have publicly expressed their resolve to work together and abide by the directions of the top leadership. Mallikarjun Kharge, the Congress president, who was in Bengaluru recently, created another controversy where instead of denying that there was any move for change of guard, stated that the party high command would take the final view on the subject.
Many political observers wanted to know that whether his reference to the high command was aimed at pointing out that even if he was the boss on paper, the decision was taken elsewhere, meaning by Rahul Gandhi. Another opinion was that since Kharge belongs to Karnataka and did not wish to get involved with the controversy there, he extricated himself by stating that the final word on the matter was not within his ambit and would be taken in New Delhi.
Siddaramaiah is without doubt the most popular leader in the state and would want to go down in history as the longest serving CM. Shivakumar, on the other hand, has worked relentlessly for the party and if the Congress is in power, he had evidently done the spadework even if he lost out to Siddaramaiah in the CM’s race. He is viewed as the future of the party even though on paper, his supporters have dwindled and have gravitated towards the CM in what is interpreted as the magnetic dimension of power. It also needs to be clearly understood that Siddaramaiah had come to the Congress from the Janata Dal (Secular) since his ambition of rising to the top position would have remained unfulfilled with H.D. Deve Gowda’s family calling the shots.
The Congress high command admitted him knowing fully well that it would upset many leaders including Kharge, who was in line for the CMship at that point of time. Siddaramaiah thus became a favourite of the top leadership, which disregarded the contribution of others and started patronizing him. The problem which has arisen in the Karnataka Congress is that the CM has always preferred those who joined the Congress with him from the JD (Secular) and this has been happening at the expense of the loyalists.
Most party veterans at the grassroots level have no access to him and this was leading to the erosion within the ranks. A view is that if the high command fails to recognize this development, the organization which was held together by Shivakumar may eventually collapse.
However, the dilemma before the top leaders who include Kharge is that if a change is brought about, Siddu may break the party and to keep himself in power could even make fresh alignments. He has also started playing his games within the Congress and is busy trying to prop up G. Parameshwara as an emerging aspirant. Parameshwara is a Dalit and is seen as a counter to Kharge in state politics. He is highly ambitious and though he was involved in some controversies in the state regarding the alleged involvement of his family in some irregular deals, he is a strong leader.
Siddaramaiah’s effort seems to be to pit him against Shivakumar, and also elevate him as a Deputy CM to send out a clear message that the number two status of his bete-noire, was in dispute. Siddu had in the past also made a pitch to appoint M.B. Patil, a senior Linagayat leader as the state party president. Shivakumar is not a greenhorn and understands all such moves. The question which is often asked is that would the Congress high command do a repeat of what it did in Punjab when it decided to replace Amarinder Singh as the Chief Minister. That move boomeranged since the matter was handled very poorly, forcing Amarinder to leave the party.
The selection of his successor was also done in an arbitrary manner, thus affecting the unity and leading to defeat in the Assembly polls. The party has since shown signs of recovery there. In Karnataka, there is a clear number two and unless some others are propped up to challenge Shivakumar, he would be the natural successor to the CM. This may not happen smoothly since there are vested interests that have taken deep roots and would want the status quo to exist. The high command has to see whether an ageing Siddaramaiah can deliver when the next round of polls takes place. In Lok Sabha elections, he was unable to stop the BJP. The issue is would Shivakumar get the post if there indeed was a pact. Between us.
