Siddaramaiah to be Karnataka chief minister: Why Congress went with the senior leader over DK Shivakumar
Siddaramaiah to be Karnataka chief minister: Why Congress went with the senior leader over DK Shivakumar
There’s finally a Cong-sensus. After four days of speculation, discussions and debates, it seems that the Congress has finally made its decision on who shall be the Karnataka chief minister. The Grand Old Party, led by Mallikarjun Kharge, on Thursday morning has finalised veteran Siddaramaiah as the 24th chief minister of Karnataka and DK Shivakumar to be his deputy.
Reports say that Shivakumar will continue as the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president and will also be allocated key portfolios in addition to the deputy post. The Deccan Herald reports that Shivakumar has called a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party in Bengaluru this evening at 7 pm where the name of Siddaramaiah will be proposed.
Some reports add that the party has decided on a rotational tenure of two-and-a-half years for both the leaders. This means that the 75-year-old Siddaramaiah will be the chief minister for half the term and then power will be transferred to DK Shivakumar.
When asked about the Congress’ decision, the 61-year-old KPCC chief told News18 that he was ready to sacrifice the position for the party and the Gandhis.
The decision is in line with what many poll pundits had predicted and finally puts an end to all the wrangling that has been taking place ever since the Congress ousted the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the southern state by winning 135 seats in a 224-member Assembly.
Since the victory on 13 May, Siddaramaiah and KPCC president DK Shivakumar have been expressing their desire to be chief minister. They were even called to New Delhi by the central leadership to discuss the issue.
As preparations begin for the swearing-in ceremony, scheduled for 20 May, we take a better look at the reasons behind the Congress choosing Siddaramaiah over DK Shivakumar.
Rise and rise of Siddaramaiah
Today, considered one of the three remaining mass leaders of Karnataka along with former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, 91, of the Janata Dal(Secular) and ex-CM B S Yediyurappa, 80, of the BJP, Siddaramaiah made his debut in the Assembly in 1983 after being elected from Chamundeshwari constituency in Mysore on a Lok Dal party ticket. He later joined the ruling erstwhile Janata Party.
It was only in 2006 that Siddaramaiah joined the Congress. In his political career, he has made a mark for introducing several Bhagya schemes – particularly the Anna Bhagya (free rice scheme) and also in approving a separate flag for Karnataka.
A former member of various factions of the Janata Parivar, Siddaramaiah is influenced by the Dr Ram Manohar Lohia brand of socialism and is a self-confessed agnostic. Over the years, he has crafted himself to be rustic politician in the minds of the people. He is also considered the architect of Karnataka’s Ahinda (an acronym for the Kannada words Alpasankhyataru (minorities), Hindulidavaru (backward classes) and Dalitaru (Dalits).
In 2013, his moment in the sun came when he was chosen as chief minister over current Congress president M Mallikarjun Kharge. He also holds the honour of being only the third Karnataka chief minister after S Nijalingappa and Devaraj Urs to complete a full term in office. He also has a record of presenting 13 state budgets as finance minister.
In the just-concluded elections, Siddaramaiah proved he’s a popular leader when he won the Varuna constituency by a margin of 46,000 votes and entered the Karnataka Assembly for the ninth time as an MLA.
Sidda over DK Shivakumar
As the results came out on Saturday, all eyes turned to the Congress and the conundrum they faced over their chief minister’s pick – it was either Siddaramaiah or DK Shivakumar.
As both leaders dug their heels in, the Congress was left with a difficult choice, but on Thursday had made its decision and went with Siddaramaiah. There are several reasons for this choice.
Firstly, Siddaramaiah enjoys popularity with the common man in the state. A pre-poll survey by Lokniti-CSDS had revealed that over 40 per cent respondents thought that Siddaramaiah is the best candidate for the chief minister’s position – almost 20 percentage points over the outgoing Bharatiya Janata Party chief minister Basavaraj Bommai. Shivakumar was even lower in the popularity ladder.
Siddaramaiah also enjoys support from the Kuruba community – the shepherd community to which he belongs – in addition to Muslims. This makes him influential in almost 70 per centof the total 224 constituencies in the state, including Lingayat- and Vokkaliga-dominated seats.
This mass popularity also makes him an acceptable choice by the MLAs. Within the party, Siddaramaiah is widely looked upon as a veteran and from the 135 winning MLAs, he is said to enjoy the support of at least 90 of them.
The Congress’ choice of going with Siddaramaiah also has a lot to do with the 2024 general elections. If the party wants to put up a strong show, they will need the votes of the Kurubas and Muslims, who are spread all over Karnataka.
Also Read: Did CBI, ED cases against Shivakumar hurt his chances?
Besides this, Siddaramaiah also has administrative experience. After all, he is one of the three leaders who were able to complete a term in office in the southern state. As a leader told The Quint, “Karnataka is in the worst financial position currently as the previous government had plunged the state into debts. An experienced hand is required to set the house in order.”
His experience will help the Congress realise its “five guarantees” – which are seen to have played a major factor in its win – such as allowance of Rs 2,000 per month for women heads of households and Rs 3,000 for unemployed graduates in the state.
Furthermore, Siddaramaiah has close links with Kannada intelligentsia and is a vocal critic of the right-wing agenda and has often said that he is not anti-Hindu, but anti-Hindutva.
Sonia called in
Since Sunday, the Congress has been in a huddle to come up with a decision on the Karnataka chief minister’s post. Deliberations have continued with DK Shivakumar refusing to relent, citing his work over the last four years – after Congress’ coalition government with JD(S) had collapsed following a mass party switch by MLAs. It is reported that in the end, the high command brought in Sonia Gandhi to sway the KPCC’s mind. NDTV reports that the deal was clinched after Sonia Gandhi spoke to DK Shivakumar.
Prep for swearing-in
Now, with the decision made all eyes turn to Bengaluru’s Sri Kanteerava Outdoor Stadium, where the swearing-in ceremony of the new Karnataka government is expected to be held on 20 May.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, News18 reports, will invite Opposition leaders to attend the swearing-in ceremony. The Gandhis, Congress CMs and senior Congress leaders, will also be in attendance at Bengaluru.
With inputs from agencies
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