Siddaramaiah to follow high command on turmoil

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday reiterated that he will abide by the Congress high command’s decision on the leadership change issue in the state. The CM has been repeatedly stating for the last few days that he and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar will go by what the high command decides on the chief minister change.

“Will abide by whatever the high command decides,” Siddaramaiah told reporters in response to a question on his son and Congress Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) Yathindra Siddaramaiah’s statement that there is no question of leadership change as of now, and that he believes that the former will continue as CM for five years. Earlier in the day, Yathindra claimed that the Congress high command has said that there is no leadership change in the state.

“I have been saying this, which is not new. I feel that, as of now, there is nothing like leadership change. I hope that he (Siddaramaiah) will complete his five-year term,” Yathindra told reporters at the Suvarna Vidhana Soudha.

To a question that Siddaramaiah had been asked to come to Delhi in January, Yathindra said the Congress high command calls the chief minister for various issues. So, he will go there and discuss. He will also talk about the prevailing situation in the state, he said.

Yathindra also admitted that there was confusion over the leadership issue because, “the Deputy Chief Minister was asked whether he wants to be the CM. There are aspirants in all the political parties. The high command has said that they will not decide it now.”

According to Yathindra, the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) elects a candidate for a definite period. It is the CLP which decides who should be the chief minister. He claimed that, “The Congress high command has made it clear that there is no leadership change as of now.” Yathindra further claimed that the Siddaramaiah to follow high command on turmoilhigh command had a meeting recently where they said they have not taken any decision and postponed it. “So, as of now, there is no talk on the change of leadership in Karnataka,” he claimed.

The power tussle within the ruling party had intensified amid speculation about a change in chief minister in the state, after the Congress Government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20.

The speculation was fuelled by an alleged “power-sharing” agreement involving Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar in 2023. However, both CM and Deputy CM had recently held breakfast meetings at each other's residences, on the instructions of the high command, which is seen as a move to pause the leadership tussle between the two and to signal Siddaramaiah’s continuation as the CM for the time being, especially ahead of the Belagavi legislature session.