Karnataka Leader of Opposition and BJP leader R Ashoka launched a scathing attack on Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday, accusing him of defying the Congress high command by repeatedly declaring he would complete a full five-year term, despite the reported power-sharing arrangement within the party.
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In a series of pointed remarks, Ashoka said the Chief Minister’s repeated public statements asserting his permanence in office amounted to a direct challenge to the authority of the Congress central leadership. “When a sitting CM keeps asserting his term while conveniently ignoring internal party understandings, it’s not confidence, it’s defiance,” the BJP leader said.
The remarks came a day after Siddaramaiah told reporters there should be “no doubt” that he would serve out the entire term as chief minister. His statement comes amid persistent speculation that Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar may take over the reins midway through the government’s tenure, as part of an informal agreement.
Ashoka questioned the silence of the Congress high command, including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and party president Mallikarjun Kharge, over what he described as Siddaramaiah’s open disregard for party discipline. “Is the high command’s will just symbolic now? Has Siddaramaiah already declared independence from party hierarchy?” he asked in a post on social media platform 'X'.
{{/usCountry}}Ashoka questioned the silence of the Congress high command, including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and party president Mallikarjun Kharge, over what he described as Siddaramaiah’s open disregard for party discipline. “Is the high command’s will just symbolic now? Has Siddaramaiah already declared independence from party hierarchy?” he asked in a post on social media platform 'X'.
{{/usCountry}}He further alleged that Siddaramaiah's tone was not just dismissive of DK Shivakumar but insulting to the very top leadership of the Congress. “By rejecting the power-sharing formula and stating ‘why should there be a doubt,’ Siddaramaiah isn’t just ignoring his deputy, he’s undermining the authority of the Gandhis and Kharge in full public view,” Ashoka said.
Referring to Kharge’s recent statement that the final call on leadership lies with the high command, Ashoka mocked the Congress central leadership’s inability to rein in its chief minister. “If the high command had any real control left, would it allow its CM to go rogue like this?” he asked.
Taking a jibe at the ruling party, Ashoka ended his remarks with a sharp rhetorical flourish: “Perhaps in Karnataka, it’s not loyalty or leadership that decides the CM’s chair, it’s lottery and luck.”