Siddaramaiah may get national role: BJP MP hints at change of guard in Karnataka

Former Karnataka Chief Minister and BJP MP Basavaraj Bommai has hinted that the Congress is planning to replace Siddaramaiah as the Chief Minister.

He claimed that Siddaramaiah might be given a national role and made the chairman of the backward class of the party.

"This is an important development in Karnataka politics. However, it is an internal decision of the Congress party and I don’t want to comment on that," Bommai said.

"As a Kannadiga who has been observing Karnataka politics for a long time, I've seen that whenever a Chief Minister is changed in the state, they are often given a position at the national level," he added.

Bommai's remarks came amid widespread speculation over a change of guard in Karnataka, even though the Congress asserted that Siddaramaiah will remain the Chief Minister.

Adding fuel to the fire, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar recently made cryptic statements regarding his Chief Ministerial ambitions. Following his recent visit to the Chamundi Hills temple, he said, "Even if efforts fail, prayers never go unanswered," hinting at his desire for the top post.

Meanwhile, Congress-in charge of Karnataka, Randeep Singh Surjewala, is holding meetings with the Congress legislators in the state as part of a performance review.

The review will cover the efficacy of the election guarantees in each constituency as well as the performance of district-level Congress functionaries and frontal organisations. “So, this is a review of the main body organisation too. It will give an idea of how we should make our policies more responsive to the people,” Surjewala said.

According to him, no opinions are being sought on a leadership change. “The answer is clearly a no,” he said. In a bid to quell the open speculation, notices are being issued to legislators such as Hussain for making public statements about a possible change of guard.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has recently issued a stern warning to his cabinet colleagues amid murmurs of leadership change within the Karnataka Congress.

Last week, Siddaramaiah firmly stated before reporters that he would continue in the position of the Chief Minister for a full five-year term.

"Yes, I will be the Chief Minister for five years. Do you have any doubt?” Siddaramaiah told reporters.

According to sources, during the cabinet meeting at Nandi hills recently, the Chief Minister directed ministers to stop airing internal matters in public and cautioned them against making any statements to the media, as per sources.

The Chief Minister’s message was aimed at putting a lid on the growing factionalism and sending a signal that disciplinary action could follow if the warnings are ignored.

- Ends