The Karnataka deputy chief minister D.K. Shivakumar has the examples of Jyotiraditya Scindia and Sachin Pilot to decide his next course of action.
A leadership crisis has been brewing in Karnataka since the party won the Assembly polls over two years ago and the Congress high command, the two members of the Gandhi family and the party chief Mallikarjun Kharge were hardly in a position to miss.
“Only the people there (Karnataka) can say what the government is doing there. But I would like to say that we will resolve such issues. People in the high command – Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and me will sit together and deliberate on this. We will give the mediation that is required,” Kharge told reporters on Wednesday.
After the Assembly elections Siddaramaiah was made the chief minister, while DKS, who believes he should have occupied the seat, was made his deputy. For most part of 2025, supporters of DKS have been pushing for him to be made the CM replacing Sidda.
Siddaramaiah. PTI picture
During his visit to Bengaluru over the past weekend, Kharge had meetings with both Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah and DKS.
The public washing of the Karnataka linen is a loss of face not only for the Gandhis but also the party managers like Randeep Singh Surjewala and K.C. Venugopal.
“The party managers do not have the heft to confront Sidda nor have they been able to persuade DKS to wait. They don’t have any leverage against either of the leaders,” said a political observer. “They (high command) had enough time to sort out the issue. Till date not even a head count of MLAs has been done to find out who has the most support. By the looks of it Siddaramaiah still has the majority of MLAs with him.”
DKS has claimed six or seven people were involved in a “deal” for a half and half term as chief minister. The followers of Sidda have denied any such deal.
DK Shivakumar. PTI picture
Some years ago, in neighbouring Maharashtra the BJP’s oldest ally Shiv Sena had parted ways claiming a similar deal. BJP, in power at the Centre, managed not only to engineer a split in its old ally and bring the faction to its fold, but has also consolidated its hold over the state.
Right now, the Congress is in power in only three states- Karnataka, Telangana and up north in tiny Himachal Pradesh. The chief ministers of Himachal and Telangana, Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and Revanth Reddy both are from the upper castes. Sidda is an OBC.
For Rahul, who has been championing the cause of a caste census, and the need for more participation of Muslims, Dalits and OBCs in politics and policies in India, the optics of removing a Dalit chief minister would be disastrous.
A vast section of the Congress feel there is no reason for Sidda to be removed at this juncture.
“There is nothing against him. The Assembly polls victory was as much because of Sidda as DKS. And so far, Sidda has never spoken publicly against DKS,” said a Congress source.
In the Congress’ scheme of things, DKS is perceived to be closest to the Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi, followed by Sonia and then Rahul. For the cash-strapped grand-old party of India, it is well known DKS is the go-to man for funds.
According to Congress insiders Sidda is not a Darbari leader. “He comes to Delhi when he has an official meeting with the Niti Ayog etc. During those visits he meets the Gandhis and the Congress chief Kharge. He is not someone who can be summoned to Delhi at any time. Sidda has always maintained his dignity and stayed away from Darbari politics,” said another Congress leader.
In the past changing an incumbent chief minister midway did not go well for the Congress in Karnataka.
Thirty five years ago, at the Bangalore airport, then Congress chief Rajiv Gandhi had announced the Congress MLAs in Karnataka will meet soon to elect a new leader to replace the chief minister Virendra Patil.
A key leader from the Lingayat community, Patil had foughthard and even managed the support of the VP Singh led Janata Dal, but had to give way to Sarekoppa Bangarappa, after a brief period of President’s Rule. The unceremonious exit of Patilbecame a rallying point for the Lingayat community.
It also paved the way for Janata Dal, and later its splinter groups as well as the BJP, to make inroads.
Within months, the BJP won four seats in the 1991 Lok Sabha elections and has since been a formidable political force in the state.
Rahul Gandhi is in all likelihoods aware of the folly committed by his father that led to a Congress stronghold in the south slipping away.
In Punjab too, though none of the MLAs supported Amarinder Singh when he was replaced by Charanjit Singh Channi as chief minister, Congress lost the Assembly polls to AAP.
Power-sharing deals have been contentious for the Congress in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. In all the three states Congress was voted out of power where the party’s veterans were seen squabbling with the younger leaders.
Sources in the Karnataka Congress said Sidda will not go down without a fight.
Unlike the former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot who had bad-mouthed his deputy Sachin, Siddaramaiah is yet to say anything about DKS in public.
He did express an urgency a couple of days ago when he said the high command should put a full stop (to the DKS issue).
The Congress high command has given indication that it will step in soon. Rahul Gandhi is believed to have reached out to DKS.
“Whatever the high command decides, if Sidda is removed he would try to get someone close to him in the chief minister’s chair,” said a source.
To a close confidante, Jyotiraditya Scindia had said he wasn’t sure if the party leadership was incapable or did not want to make him the chief minister (of Madhya Pradesh). Scindia did not wait to get the answer to his question and jumped ship. Sachin Pilot decided to wait.
For Karnataka, choice lies as much with the Congress high command as DKS on whether to escalate or wait.