Have resolved to work harder: Bommai amid buzz over change of guard

Bommai said it was the Congress that had the problem of leadership as Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar are fighting to be named as the chief ministerial candidate in the 2023 assembly elections.

Chief minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday said the speculation of a leadership change fuelled by the Congress has made him more resilient to work harder for the people, the state and the party.

Chief minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday said the speculation of a leadership change fuelled by the Congress has made him more resilient to work harder for the people, the state and the party. (ANI)

“It is amusing, these people (Congress) are trying to do it time and again and they think that they can bring instability in the minds of the people. The people of Karnataka know very well, they know about my functioning, my programmes and they will not believe it. They (Congress) have utterly failed,” Bommai said.

He said it was the Congress that had the problem of leadership as Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar are fighting to be named as the chief ministerial candidate in the 2023 assembly elections.

“My presence of mind has become very clear because this is all falsehood and the truth is that there is a stable government. I have resolved myself to work much harder and more time. Every day, I am going to spend two hours more for the development of the state, the people and building of my party,” Bommai said.

The statements come at a time when the topic of leadership change in the government has made another news cycle, adding to the confusion within the ranks of the ruling BJP.

The Congress, the principal opposition in Karnataka, has kept the pressure on with several posts on twitter and statements over the last few weeks on possible leadership change, especially that of Bommai.

With not even a year to go before elections, the BJP is trying to keep its house in order to help the party successfully defend its term in office against the onslaught of the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) or JD(S).

The news of Bommai being changed has made the news cycle at least three times since he replaced BS Yediyurappa as chief minister in July last year. The piling charges of corruption, infighting within the saffron ranks, allegations of fanning communal tensions to deflect attention away from the lack of development programmes and other issues has not helped quell reports of a possible change.

BJP leaders like Umesh Katti and Basanagouda Patil (Yatnal) among others have indicated the possibility of a change in chief minister, adding to the confusion within the saffron party ranks.

However, the BJP is likely to change the state party leadership as Nalin Kumar Kateel’s term as president came to an end earlier this month.

“Will BJP blame the Congress for this as well? They seem to have 2 opinions even about their party chief, not just the CM. The BJP has lost the plot & governance has disappeared in Karnataka,” Priyank Kharge, former minister, Congress legislator and head of communications for the Sonia Gandhi-led party in Karnataka, said in a post on Twitter.

He shared a news report on Yediyurappa indicating a possible change in the BJP state president.