BENGALURU: Karnataka deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Wednesday hinted at stepping down as the president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), but assured party workers that he would be in the “frontline leadership” of the party.
“I am aware that I will not be sticking to this post (KPCC chief) permanently. It has been over five and a half years (since he took charge as KPCC chief), and it will be six years next March. We need to give a chance to others. However, I will be there in the frontline leadership,” Shivakumar, who took over as KPCC president in 2020, told party workers.
The Kanakapura MLA said that he wanted to quit as KPCC chief after he became the Deputy CM in 2023. “But Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and LoP in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi asked me to continue as KPCC chief,” Shivakumar said, adding that he does not know if he will “be there or not.” After several Congress workers objected to this, he said, “Don’t worry. I will be in leadership... and that too in the frontline.”
Shivakumar’s statement assumes significance in light of the speculation over the change of leadership in the Karnataka Congress as the government approaches the halfway mark of its five-year tenure this month.
Hitting out at some Congress leaders, Shivakumar said one should not have concern for their chair. “How long can one stick to one chair? I became an MLA when I was young… I even became a minister, and now I am a senior citizen. We need to groom young leaders,” the Deputy CM said.
Meanwhile, a book on former PM Indira Gandhi’s quotes translated by Shivakumar was released on the occasion. According to Shivakumar, he named the Congress office after Indira Gandhi following a suggestion from Kharge. “I am also releasing one more book called Gandhi Bharatha. I will also include my contributions as KPCC president in it. Kharge will release it,” he added.
Shivakumar said he wants to construct 100 Congress offices across Karnataka. “Congress high command leaders have asked me to give the list of MLAs and ministers who have not shown interest in constructing Congress offices. For some, they want only power and forget that the Congress office is like a temple,” he said. Shivakumar said he always strived to give important posts to party workers. “Now party workers are involved in the guarantee implementation committees. No other state has done this,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.
On the occasion, three women achievers, including former minister Lalitha Naik, were given the Indira Priyadarshini award.
Shivakumar recalled that Congress leader Sonia Gandhi once told him to renovate the memorial of Indira Gandhi in New Delhi. “We got granite from our quarry in Kanakapura. Even for the Rajiv Gandhi memorial, we got granite from here,” he said.