BENGALURU: Days after senior leaders Siddaramaiah and Dinesh Gundu Rao resigned as Congress legislature party leader and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, respectively, the state unit of the party has remained rudderless. Dinesh Gundu Rao has even returned his official car and has stopped attending office since the last four days, although his colleagues and other leaders have asked him to continue till a new state chief is appointed.
While lobbying for the top post is gaining pace, some party leaders hinted that since the All India Congress Committee itself is headed for a revamp, the state unit could continue in limbo for some more time.
Given the fluid situation, senior leader R V Deshpande felt that the high command should continue with Siddaramaiah and Dinesh Gundu Rao, as decisions related to the recently concluded bypolls were taken in consultation with everyone and were not just their own. While there is some talk that he could be in contention for the KPCC chief’s post, Deshpande told TNIE that it is far from the truth.
Meanwhile, Vokkaliga leader D K Shivakumar, who was hailed as a hero after his release on bail in a Enforcement Directorate-related case, seems to be emerging as a favourite for the KPCC chief’s post. Dalit leader Dr G Parameshwara, who was KPCC president for eight years and held the post when the party came to power in 2013, is also a strong contender.
Among other probables are Lingayat leader H K Patil, who has a clean record and was opposition leader in the 90s when the Janata Dal was in power. He was a contender for the post of opposition leader when AICC general secretary Madhusudhan Mistry was in charge of the state. Former Home minister M B Patil, a Siddaramaiah loyalist, is another leader whose name is doing the rounds.
The names of former Congress floor leader in the Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, and former Minister of State for Railway K H Muniyappa too are being discussed, party sources said.
A Congress leader remarked, “Since we have three more years to go before the next Assembly election, we need a committed leader like late Veerendra Patil or Oscar Fernandes who had extensively toured the state, visiting taluks and hoblis to build the party brick by brick right from the grassroots level.’’