Caste groups issue warning to Congress amid Karnataka power tussle
Karnataka Congress faces pressure from Vokkaliga and backward class groups over Deputy CM Shivakumar's potential succession of CM Siddaramaiah.
The Congress leadership is facing intensifying pressure from two major community organisations in Karnataka as the debate over whether Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar should succeed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah enters a more public phase. Leaders from the Vokkaliga community, to which Shivakumar belongs, warned that any attempt to overlook him for the top post would trigger strong opposition, while a prominent backward class federation cautioned that efforts to remove Siddaramaiah would have consequences for the party.
The Karnataka Rajya Vokkaligara Sangha said it would challenge any move by the Congress high command that sidelines Shivakumar. At a press conference, its president L Srinivas argued that Shivakumar had worked “tirelessly” during the previous Assembly campaign, travelling across Karnataka and strengthening the organisation, resulting in the party securing 140 seats. Srinivas also claimed there had been an understanding between the leadership and Shivakumar that he would become chief minister after Siddaramaiah’s two and a half years in office.
“Siddaramaiah had been the CM for five years during his previous tenure. Now, after completing two and a half years this time, there are doubts about whether he will transfer power to Shivakumar,” he said. He added that several ministers and legislators were already making trips to Delhi for clarity.
Support for Shivakumar was also voiced by Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji of the Adichunchunagiri Math, a significant spiritual institution for the Vokkaligas. He told reporters that both his personal view and the larger sentiment within the community favoured Shivakumar becoming chief minister. The seer said he believed the Congress high command would act appropriately, pointing to the deputy chief minister’s long service and loyalty to the party. “I am watching and reading in the media about the developments in the government. The Math is a centre of faith for the Vokkaliga community and has been a voice for other communities as well. On the CM issue, Shivakumar has not spoken to me yet,” he said.
The seer noted that the Vokkaliga community has historically produced leaders who have headed governments across multiple parties and played major roles in the state’s development. He said that in the 2023 Assembly election, community members had voted with the hope that “one among us would become CM.” He added, “There was hope it would happen after 2.5 years, but that too now seems unlikely. If it doesn’t happen, it will sadden thousands of devotees of the Math.”
Calling the uncertainty “unhealthy for the state,” he said, “Shivakumar should become the CM after 2.5 years -- this is both my opinion and that of the devotees.” He urged the Congress leadership to allow Shivakumar, whom he described as having worked “like a disciplined soldier,” to serve for the development of the state as previous Vokkaliga chief ministers had done.
As these statements circulated, Housing Minister Zameer Ahmed Khan responded to questions about the community’s demand by saying it was expected that Vokkaligas would support Shivakumar “because they are his community,” while adding that “the Chief Minister’s chair is not empty.”
Another organisation, the Karnataka State Federation of Backward Class Communities (KSFBCC), issued its own warning -- this time against replacing Siddaramaiah. Its president K M Ramachandrappa said the AHINDA coalition of minorities, backward classes and Dalits was troubled by recent political developments.
Ramachandrappa criticised the involvement of religious leaders in the debate and said threats to unseat a chief minister were not new. “These threats are not new ones but have been happening for a very long time. Since independence it has been happening. We the downtrodden community will not bow down to these threats,” he said. Expressing concern, he added, “Those against the caste census can unseat the chief minister, we can only assume how they will behave with our communities.”
