Karnataka power tussle: Siddaramaiah reacts amid speculations over CM post; BJP invokes OBC angle

NEW DELHI: Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday reacted in a guarded tone to the growing buzz around a possible leadership change in the state Congress government and the ongoing power tussle with his deputy DK Shivakumar.Responding to questions on the speculation, Siddaramaiah said, “I will speak about it tomorrow,” news agencies quoted him as saying. The leadership debate within the Karnataka Congress has been brewing for months, with repeated speculation over a possible power-sharing arrangement between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar.According to sources quoted by PTI on Tuesday, the Congress leadership has offered Siddaramaiah a larger national role and a Rajya Sabha seat, paving the way for DK Shivakumar to take over as chief minister for the remainder of the term.However, Siddaramaiah has not accepted the proposal yet, the report said.Meanwhile, Karnataka home minister also said that no one is aware of the discussions held during CM Siddaramaiah's recent meeting with Congress high command in Delhi, adding that AICC Karnataka in-charge Randeep Surjewala's visit to Bengaluru is expected to bring clarity amid ongoing speculations.The Congress leadership also reportedly held day-long discussions with both Karnataka leaders in an attempt to resolve the prolonged tussle over the chief minister’s post. Despite the speculation, the party officially denied that any leadership change was discussed during the meeting.Earlier in the day, Siddaramaiah was seen paying floral tributes to country's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on his death anniversary.Former Karnataka chief minister and BJP leader Basavaraj S Bommai attacked the Congress over the reported leadership crisis in the state. Referring to the possible removal of Siddaramaiah, he said, “Whenever a chief minister is removed, it has an effect. If an OBC leader is removed, the OBC people will be unhappy. This will create a lot of problems for the Congress in the 2028 assembly elections.”He also criticised the Congress government’s administration and questioned whether a leadership change would improve governance. “The Administration in Karnataka has collapsed. No development work is being done. The people are suffering. I don't think DK Shivakumar has a magic wand to change this. The deterioration which started at the time of Siddaramaiah will continue with Shivakumar. By the end of their term, the govt will be in shambles, and the State will be in a poor condition.”“We have been raising this issue, but there are a lot of power-hungry people in Congress who are not bothered about what the Opposition or the people say. This is why they (Congress) will pay the price in the next elections.”The Congress leadership has intervened several times since the formation of the Karnataka government in 2023 to manage tensions between Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar. Supporters of Shivakumar have repeatedly claimed that a rotational chief ministership arrangement was agreed upon at the time of government formation, although the Congress high command has never publicly confirmed such a formula.