BENGALURU: The ‘mission’ of both Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar to meet Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, expecting him to clear the air over the leadership issue in the state, is unlikely to succeed.
According to Congress insiders, Rahul, who has been denying an audience to Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar to discuss the change of guard issue, will be flying to Finland on a 10-day visit from November 15, a day after the results of the Bihar Assembly elections are declared.
The Congress high command has instructed its Karnataka leaders, including the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister, not to visit Delhi to discuss the change in leadership issue, said a source.
Siddaramaiah, however, is planning to visit the national capital on November 15 to take part in the release of the autobiography of former union minister and Supreme Court counsel Kapil Sibal.
Siddaramaiah is expected to remain in Delhi for a couple of days, during which he is likely to meet several union ministers, including Home Minister Amit Shah.
He is also expected to meet All-India Congress Committee (AICC) president Mallikarjun Kharge and party general secretaries KC Venugopal and Randeep Singh Surjewala. It can be recalled that Siddaramaiah could not meet Rahul over the leadership issue during his visit to Delhi in July this year.
Meanwhile, Siddaramaiah is likely to break the record of the late D Devaraj Urs as the longest-serving CM of the state (7 years and 234 days on January 5, 2026), as the top brass is in no mood to replace him, said a part insider.
“The results of Bihar polls will have no bearing on Karnataka’s political landscape. The high command is unlikely to give its nod for a cabinet reshuffle… but the CM can use his discretion to fill the two vacant ministerial berths,” said the party insider, adding that the high command will take a call on the leadership issue at an appropriate time.
