Siddaramaiah gets reprieve with Congress leadership in introspection over Bihar setback

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah may have got a reprieve from frequent public comments about leadership change with the Bihar setback pushing the Congress leadership into deep introspection that is likely to last weeks.

With his regime set to complete half its term in the next few days, the CM has been keen on a Cabinet reshuffle. He had postponed his discussions on the subject with the Delhi leadership as they had been preoccupied with the Bihar assembly polls.

In the last two years, Siddaramaiah has lost two Valmiki (ST) community ministers – one over a scandal and the other for his comments on `vote chori’ that did not align with the AICC stand. Valmiki community is a dominant subsect among STs.


The CM is said to be keen on dropping a few non-performers from the cabinet and inducting a couple of his favorites in their place ahead of the winter session of the assembly which will start in Belagavi on December 8.

Siddaramaiah, who met Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on Saturday, is expected to visit Delhi again on Monday. Dy CM DK Shivakumar is also camping in Delhi, meeting party leaders. Both leaders have been quietly asserting their influence within the party to ensure their authority is not whittled down. Quite a few MLAs of the Old Mysuru region as well as other districts are banking heavily on Shivakumar to become ministers.

Home Minister G Parameshwara’s comments on Sunday suggesting that there would only be a cabinet reshuffle and not leadership change is not exactly a music to Shivakumar’s camp. Some of his close followers have been confident that the eight-term MLA’s time to the top job is nearing.

Speculations have also been swirling about a change in Shivakumar’s leadership as head of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) in the event of a Cabinet recast. Quite a few ministers are open to swap their Cabinet berth for the coveted party post.

Siddaramaiah has, in recent weeks, repeatedly said any talk of a “November revolution” was only an illusion and he would complete his full term as CM.

Since Siddaramaiah took over the state’s reins for a second time in May 2023, there have been unconfirmed reports that Shivakumar relented and agreed to be the Dy CM only after he extracted a promise from the party leadership.