Shivakumar downplays meeting with Kharge amid talks of CM change

Bengaluru/New Delhi: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Monday played down the significance of his meeting with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, one that came amidst speculations of a leadership change in the southern state.

The meeting on Sunday was held to discuss party matters, Shivakumar, also the Karnataka Congress chief, said.

Reluctant to share details of his meeting the party president, Shivakumar

said, “we are all there if the party is there.”

The meeting comes as the Congress government in Karnataka reaches the halfway mark of its five-year term in November, which is being dubbed by some as the “November revolution”. Speculations have also been rife over Shivakumar’s possible elevation as CM in lines with a rumoured 2023 agreement with CM Siddaramaiah.

According to several party insiders, if the Congress high command approves a cabinet reshuffle, it would signal that the incumbent chief minister Siddaramaiah will complete the full term, scuttling the chances of Shivakumar for the coveted post.

“It is natural for the party state president to meet the national president, nothing special. There were some party matters like inauguration of party offices, also some trust-related matters. Other than that, nothing,” Shivakumar told reporters in New Delhi on questions regarding his meeting with Kharge.

To a query about the meeting amid speculations about cabinet reshuffle and leadership change, he merely said, “nothing... if the party is there, we are all there.”