BENGALURU: Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar seems to have checkmated his party leaders, who wished to replace him as KPCC president, by stating that he will lead the party in the Assembly polls in 2028. Shivakumar said he will be active in politics for another 8-10 years.
His statements are being interpreted as a message to both his friends and foes within the party. It came at a time when the coterie of ministers around Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is trying to allegedly get Shivakumar replaced as KPCC president.
To a crowd that was chanting “DK, DK” at the state government employees’ conference recently, he told, “You can raise such slogans when I win the next election and run the show under my leadership. My health is good and I will continue to be in politics for another 8-10 years. Have faith in me.”
With Siddaramaiah declaring that he is unlikely to contest the next Assembly polls, Shivakumar has started projecting himself as the future leader who can call the shots within the party, said a Congress leader. “It will certainly boost the morale of his supporters, and send out a warning signal to second-line leaders, especially first-time MLAs, who want to contest the next Assembly election on a Congress ticket. Shivakumar, who is 62 years old, is hoping to be active like Siddaramaiah,” observed one of Shivakumar’s sympathisers.
According to political analysts, the young generation looks up to young and energetic leadership and Shivakumar has stressed that he is fit and fine, while indirectly comparing himself with his peers within the party who are getting old and in the twilight of their political careers. This will be Shivakumar’s USP, they said.
Interestingly, he has managed to get his loyalist Manjunatha HS as the new president of Indian Youth Congress Karnataka unit. His staunch supporter and KPCC working president GC Chandrashekar, a two-time Rajya Sabha member, said Shivakumar has over two decades of active politics left in him. “We need the leadership of Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar forever as we cannot go for elections without their leadership. If we talk about health issues, Shivakumar can do politics for 20 years, not just 8-10 years,” he remarked.
“There are still three-and-a-half years left for the election. Shivakumar is currently the KPCC president, and there is nothing wrong in him saying that. The KPCC president is the supreme leader of the party in the state. In my opinion, what he said should have been about local bodies and BBMP elections. We will face these elections under his leadership,” he maintained.
Defending Shivakumar, Home Minister Dr G Parameshwar said there is nothing wrong in his statement. “What’s wrong with it? Did you find anything wrong,” he shot back at reporters.
DKS to meet Rahul, Kharge in Delhi on Feb 25
KPCC president and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar is likely to meet LoP in LS Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge in New Delhi on February 25. On the pretext of inviting them for the foundation laying ceremony for the new Congress Bhavan, coming up on Race Course Road, Shivakumar is visiting high command leaders.
He is likely to discuss political developments in Karnataka and organisation of the party in the state for future polls. He is also scheduled to meet Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil and take up the issue of the Centre putting on hold the state’s irrigation projects.
The delay in clearance for the Mekedatu balance reservoir and Kalasa Banduri projects and delay in releasing Rs 5,300 crore for the Upper Bhadra Project for which the Centre had made an allocation in the 2024-25 budget are likely to come for discussion.