Karnataka Politics: The most important court of Congress politics is going to be held in Delhi on 14th December. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar will together meet senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi. This meeting is taking place at a time when the internal tussle over the top position of power in Karnataka seems to be intensifying again. There is a conflict going on between the two big leaders of Congress for the post of Chief Minister.
Why is this meeting with Sonia Gandhi important?
It is almost certain within the Congress that the final decision on Karnataka’s leadership dispute will be taken by the high command. Party President Mallikarjun Kharge has already said that Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and he himself will together resolve this confusion. Now that Siddaramaiah and Shivkumar are reaching Delhi together, it is clear that the matter is at a crucial juncture.
How was the time and platform of the meeting decided?
What is the whole power struggle in Karnataka?
The Congress government in Karnataka has the strong support of about 140 MLAs. But balancing power within is not easy. On November 20, after the government completed two and a half years, the discussion again intensified that the post of Chief Minister was to be changed on the formula of two and a half years. However, the party and the two leaders never officially confirmed it. In recent days, during the ongoing winter session of the Assembly in Belagavi, the activities of both the camps raised the political temperature.
The Congress government in Karnataka has the strong support of about 140 MLAs. (Photo PTI)
Dinner politics and increasing speculation
- Both DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah held dinner meetings with MLAs on different days.
- Claim of 50-55 MLAs attending DK Shivkumar’s dinner.
- Statement of Congress MLA Iqbal Hussain – Shivkumar will become the Chief Minister after the session.
- Siddaramaiah also had a dinner meeting with MLAs a day before.
- Both camps called it a ‘social meeting’, but the message was clear.
High command’s instructions and apparent peace
To ensure that BJP does not get political advantage, on the instructions of the high command, both the leaders recently held breakfast meetings at each other’s houses. An attempt was made to make everything appear normal on the outside, but internally the politics of messages continued. The assembly session is ending on December 19, and before that a strategy was adopted to avoid any major conflict.
