On Wednesday, there were signs of a major political shift in Karnataka. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah may resign on Thursday amid growing pressure from the Congress leadership to change leadership in the state.
Siddaramaiah is expected to submit his resignation around 11 am on Thursday, sources said. If the change in leadership is formally accepted, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar will become the main contender for the Chief Minister’s post.
Sources in the Chief Minister’s office have confirmed that Siddaramaiah has sought time to meet Karnataka Governor Thawarchand Gehlot in May, with Congress insiders hinting that he may resign during the meeting with the governor. In another major development, Siddaramaiah is scheduled to hold a breakfast meeting for all Karnataka cabinet ministers at his residence in Bengaluru on Thursday morning.
Congress general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Surjewala is also scheduled to reach Bengaluru on Thursday. He will hold talks with senior leaders of the state to ensure that there is no conflict within the party.
According to sources, the Congress high command has asked Siddaramaiah to enter national politics through the Rajya Sabha and play a major role in the party’s organization ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. The Congress leadership wants to present him as one of the key backward class faces of the party at the national level. Recently, leaders like Siddaramaiah, DK Sivakumar, Mallikarjun Kharg, Rahul Gandhi and others held several lengthy meetings in Delhi where the changes were believed to have been discussed.
Siddaramaiah is believed to have made some mistakes in understanding the situation as he was overconfident about his position. On the other hand, DK Sivakumar has strengthened his position by maintaining constant contact with the top leadership of the Congress. He ordered his supporters to remain calm in public and managed to win the trust of leaders like Mallikarjun Kharg, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi. So far, neither Siddaramaiah nor DK Sivakumar has publicly commented on the leadership change.