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Congress high command will intervene in leadership crisis when it deems fit: Kharge
Congress president Kharge indicated potential intervention in Karnataka leadership disputes, as CM Siddaramaiah and deputy Shivakumar face speculation over power-sharing.
The Congress high command will intervene in Karnataka’s internal leadership questions when it deems necessary, the party’s national president Mallikarjun Kharge said on Monday, even as speculation persists over a possible change at the top of the state government.
“Whenever necessary, the party would call them,” Kharge told reporters when asked if chief minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy, DK Shivakumar, would be summoned to New Delhi for discussions.
The remarks come amid renewed debate within the ruling Congress after the government crossed the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20. The discussion has been driven by reports of a power-sharing understanding reached in 2023 between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, an arrangement that has not been publicly acknowledged by the chief minister’s camp.
Siddaramaiah, who recently became Karnataka’s longest-serving chief minister, surpassing D. Devaraj Urs, has consistently said he intends to complete a full five-year term. At the same time, he has noted that the final decision rests with the Congress high command.
On Sunday, the chief minister sought to dismiss talk of a rift, accusing the media of manufacturing a conflict. “There is no fight, you create it. Where is the fight? Unnecessarily, you ask such questions,” he told reporters in Mangaluru, responding to queries sparked by a Bharatiya Janata Party social media post predicting a renewed contest for the top post after Sankranti.
Shivakumar, who also serves as president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, has struck a more aspirational tone in recent public appearances. Speaking at the Udyami Vokkaliga Expo 2026 on Sunday, he said he was confident the party would decide his future. “I do not come from a political family, yet I have grown to this level. I am confident that the party will take a decision on me going forward. I have taken many blows in politics,” he said.
His comments have been widely interpreted as an assertion of his chief ministerial ambitions. Shivakumar is believed to be pressing his case by citing a reported two-and-a-half-year rotation agreement, a claim rejected by the chief minister’s supporters.
Referring to his time in jail and support from followers, Shivakumar added, “You have all prayed for me when I was in jail. I am also aware that you are praying for me now and you are wishing me well. I believe prayers will never go to waste.”
Addressing criticism from members of his own Vokkaliga community, he said: “They are stabbing me from the front and from the back. My conscience knows how honest I was when Union minister HD Kumaraswamy was the chief minister. Now, he accuses me of backstabbing him. I do not need any certificates. My conscience knows.”
