High command to take a call after Bihar polls: CM
Chief minister Siddaramaiah on Monday again rejected speculation about a possible change in the state’s leadership
Chief minister Siddaramaiah on Monday rejected speculation about a possible change in the state’s leadership, saying that only the Congress high command will decide on the issue after the Bihar Assembly elections.
Speaking to reporters in Mysuru, the chief minister appeared visibly annoyed when pressed about rumours of his deputy, D.K. Shivakumar, succeeding him.“It does not matter what people say. Anyone may say anything. Tell me, who is the high command?” Siddaramaiah said. “It is Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge. Have they said anything on this? Then why raise it? It’s not what people say, it’s the media that keeps talking about it.”
He reiterated that discussions on a cabinet reshuffle would be held only after the Bihar elections, scheduled for November 6 and 11. “I will meet Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge after the Bihar elections and take their guidance. I am going to Delhi on November 15,” he said.
The chief minister also clarified that he had not been invited to campaign in Bihar but expressed confidence that the opposition INDIA bloc. “If I am called, I will go. This time, the INDIA Alliance will come to power in Bihar because people are tired of Nitish Kumar. He has no ideology. He has been with every alliance,” he said, adding, “Nitish Kumar has copied our guarantees there, but the people will not support him.”
Meanwhile, deputy chief minister and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president D.K. Shivakumar sought to rally support for the INDIA bloc during a meeting with the Bihar Association in North Bengaluru on Sunday. Appealing to Bihari residents to vote for the Mahagathbandhan, Shivakumar urged them to take leave from work and travel home for polling days.
“You all said that I want a big seat. That is not important to me,” he told the gathering. “If the Mahagathbandhan comes to power in Bihar, it is as if you have given me all the seats.” He also pledged to allocate land for a civic facility site for the Bihari Association in Bengaluru and promised to instruct employers to grant workers three days off to cast their votes.
During his speech, Shivakumar endorsed Tejashwi Yadav, saying, “Rahul Gandhi has announced that Lalu Prasad Yadav’s son Tejashwi Yadav should be made the chief minister for the development of Bihar. Rahul Gandhi should be made the Prime Minister of this country.”
Political discussions in Karnataka have increasingly been dominated by the Congress’s percieved internal dynamics. Shivakumar’s growing popularity among party workers and legislators has fuelled chatter about a possible leadership change as the government completes half its term in November.
However, senior Congress leaders have consistently denied such claims. State home Minister G Parameshwara said last week that “statements by legislators on the leadership change are irrelevant, as the final decision rests with the Congress High Command.” Urban development minister Byrathi Suresh also dismissed talk of a “November revolution,” insisting that “the post of chief minister is not vacant in the state. No one is asking to remove that post and give it to us.”
Speaking to reporters in Kolar, Suresh said, “There is no revolution in the state. There is no illusion. Everything is speculative news.” On the demand for a Dalit CM, he added, “Everyone has the right to ask for any post in a democratic system. CM Siddaramaiah, DCM D.K. Shivakumar, and I are disciplined soldiers of the Congress party. The final decision on any issue will be taken by our efficient high command.”
