New Delhi: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday met Congress general secretaries KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala at the party headquarters, Indira Bhavan, ahead of a meeting with the Congress high command amid speculation over a possible leadership change in the state.
Earlier in the day, Siddaramaiah held a breakfast meeting with Karnataka ministers MB Patil, G Parameshwara, Bhyrati Suresh, Satish Jarakiholi, KJ George, HC Mahadevappa, MLC BK Hariprasad and legal advisor AS Ponnanna at Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi.
Meanwhile, 17 MLAs arrived at Karnataka Bhavan, while more legislators were expected to reach the national capital later in the day ahead of the Congress leadership meeting.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar also arrived at Indira Bhavan to attend the meeting amid continuing speculation over a leadership transition in the state.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal, Rajya Sabha MP Randeep Surjewala and Congress leader Sachin Pilot were also present for the discussions.
Speaking briefly to reporters while leaving his Safdarjung residence, Shivakumar said, “Going to Karnataka Bhavan first and will take part in the meeting,” without elaborating further.
However, both Siddaramaiah and Kharge declined to comment on the possibility of a leadership change or the agenda of the meeting.
Karnataka Minister MB Patil said only Rahul Gandhi was aware of the agenda and added that details would emerge after the discussions.
“No one has any information about it. It could be about the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, MLC elections… There could be a cabinet reshuffle as well… Only Rahul Gandhi knows about it,” Patil said.
Karnataka MLA C Puttarangashetty said the decision on leadership rested with the party high command and described himself as a “disciple of Siddaramaiah”.
“Whether it will happen or not is a matter at the high command level. Since the beginning, I have been a disciple of Siddaramaiah. Siddaramaiah is the CM now. No change. But we don’t know yet; we have to see what happens in the future,” he said.
According to Congress sources, clarity regarding the Chief Minister’s position is expected within the next two to three days.
Sources also said discussions are likely to cover several other issues, including Rajya Sabha elections, a possible cabinet reshuffle and MLC polls.
Earlier, Siddaramaiah told reporters he was invited to the meeting but was unaware of the agenda.
“The high command called me, so I have come. I don’t know the subject matter of the meeting. Venugopal ji invited me for the meeting, and I have come,” he said after arriving in New Delhi.
Speculation over a leadership change in Karnataka Congress has persisted since the government completed 2.5 years in office last year. Over the past 18 months, Shivakumar’s supporters have repeatedly claimed that he would soon take over as Chief Minister, though no transition has taken place so far.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
