From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: Karntaka Congress president D K Shivakumar on Wednesday rang up Rahul Gandhi to convey his decision to better continue as the state party prresident instead of becoming a deputy chief minister under Siddaramaian, who did nothing in the last three years to improve the party’s prospects.
He said he has conveyed this also to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, rejecting his offer to have six portfolios, including PWD. It is his hard labour in the past three years that the Congress ousted BJP from power while Siddaramaian was sitting at home, he asserted.
Siddaramaiah’s CM bid is based on larger MLA support and surveys claiming his popularity, and also, his 5-year complete tenure as a chief minister. Kharge will declare the CM to be sworn in on Thursday, based on the reports of the party observers who spoke to the elected MLAs one to one in Bengaluru on Sunday and a final round of meeting with the two contenders Wednesday evening.
Reports indicated that Siddaramaiah could be the next Karnataka chief minister. His swearing-in is likely to take place on Thursday. The Congress, however, rejected the reports and said the deliberations on the Karnataka CM post were still underway.
AICC in-charge of state Randeep Singh Surjewala also asserted that Karnataka will have a five-year-long stable government and urged people not to believe in speculation and “fake news” which it alleged was being peddled by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Siddaramaiah is considered the front-runner among the two while Shivakumar is seen taking a strong position, claiming that the assembly polls were won under him as state party chief and that he has worked hard for ensuring this victory.
Earlier in the day, Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar met Rahul Gandhi separately. The meetings came a day after the two held separate meetings with Kharge at his residence and discussed issues regarding the government formation.
