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Post of party chief given as reward for work: DK Shivakumar

By, Bengaluru
Jan 17, 2025 03:25 AM IST

Satish Jarkiholi, a Siddaramaiah ally, said the state Congress needs a leader who could devote undivided attention to organisational work and electoral strategy

A day after Public Works Department minister Satish Jarkiholi said that the Congress legislators have asked the party high command to give clarity on the post of state party president, deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar said that party positions cannot be debated in public forums or influenced by media narratives.

DK Shivakumar is regarded as a key strategist for the Congress in Karnataka. His leadership in the recent state elections helped the party secure a decisive victory. (PTI)
DK Shivakumar is regarded as a key strategist for the Congress in Karnataka. His leadership in the recent state elections helped the party secure a decisive victory. (PTI)

“Can anyone get (the post) through discussions in the media? You can’t get it in the media or any shop. It is given as a reward for the work we do. Will the media gift it to you? These are new trends,” Shivakumar, who is also the state Congress president, told reporters on Thursday.

Shivakumar is regarded as a key strategist for the Congress in Karnataka. His leadership in the recent state elections helped the party secure a decisive victory.

This comes a day after Jarkiholi, known to be an ally of chief minister Siddaramaiah, said that the state Congress needed a leader who could devote undivided attention to organisational work and electoral strategy. This led to speculation over whether Shivakumar, who has held the KPCC president’s post since July 2020, would continue in the role.

Speaking at a Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting, Jarkiholi said that party legislators had communicated to the high command the need for clarity on the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) presidency.

“We need a full-fledged president. Legislators have asked the high command to either announce that they would continue with the existing president or appoint a new one,” he said.

The internal conflict drew sharp criticism from Congress state working president Manjunath Bhandary, who asked senior leaders to exercise restraint and avoid making statements that could harm party discipline.

“The party high command, led by Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, and Rahul Gandhi, will decide all matters such as when to change the KPCC president or who will continue as ministers. No minister should make statements regarding this,” Bhandary said in a statement on Thursday.

He stressed that leadership decisions should be discussed directly with the party's high command.

“The decision on leadership change should not be discussed with the media. If there are any issues, they should first be brought to the attention of the high command,” he said, adding that the high command has sought a report on leaders who violated discipline by making public remarks.

After facing backlash, Jarkiholi issued a clarification on Thursday, alleging that the media had distorted his statement.

“The reports that appeared in the media are far from the truth. Some media reports were made to look grandiose,” he said in a Facebook video.

“I never spoke about replacing DK Shivakumar. I only gave suggestions keeping in view the party organisation and upcoming elections,” he added.

Jarkiholi reiterated that the matter of leadership change must come from the top. “Any decision on the KPCC president is left to Delhi leaders, the chief minister, and the current state party president,” he said.

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