BJP slams Congress over Siddaramaiah-Shivakumar public spat in Karnataka

While Siddaramaiah has maintained he intends to serve the full five-year term, Shivakumar’s recent comments and growing public signalling have once again brought the Congress’ internal power dynamics to the forefront in Karnataka.

The BJP, on Friday, stepped up its attack on the Congress in Karnataka, seizing on the latest public exchanges between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar, alleging that the party is consumed by infighting and power struggles.

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said the social-media back-and-forth between the two leaders had added “another episode” to what he dubbed an “OTT series” of Congress leaders competing with one another.

“One day there are claims of a secret pact over the chief minister’s post, the next day cryptic posts about ‘word power’ appear, and then come counter-posts,” he said. “Their entire focus seems to revolve around the chair. The Congress today stands for ‘I Need Chair’ and ‘I Need Confusion’.”

Poonawalla accused the ruling party of neglecting Karnataka’s governance issues while its senior leaders engage in public messaging battles. “Farmers, the economy, law and order, infrastructure and even basic civic issues like potholes are in crisis. But Congress leaders are only interested in protecting their own power centres,” he remarked.

The latest round of speculation was triggered after Shivakumar posted a message on microblogging site X stating, “Word power is world power… the biggest force is to keep one’s word.” Though framed broadly, the post immediately set off political chatter given that Shivakumar’s supporters have long insisted on a rotational arrangement for the chief ministership at the halfway mark.

Siddaramaiah responded soon after with his own post on the importance of one’s spoken word. Political observers read the exchange as a fresh sign of friction between the two camps.

Shivakumar later attempted to play down the controversy, saying his remarks were made during Constitution Day events and referred to the responsibility of judges, advocates and public officials to honour what they say.

The timing, however, coinciding with the completion of 2.5 years of the Congress government, has revived questions about whether a leadership change is being pushed internally.

While Siddaramaiah has maintained he intends to serve the full five-year term, Shivakumar’s recent comments and growing public signalling have once again brought the Congress’ internal power dynamics to the forefront in Karnataka.