'Congress is united in Karnataka': DK Shivakumar rules out leadership change in state

DK Shivakumar ruled out the possibilities of change in leadership in the state.

Hours after Congress General Secretary Randeep Surjewala ruled out the possibilities of a change in leadership in Karnataka, state deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar said the party is united and there are no groups within the state Congress.

Speaking to the press after a meeting of MLAs with Surjewala, DK Shivakumar said "...My duty is to give more strength to the discipline of the party. We have to concentrate on the local body elections and the 2028 assembly elections...There are no groups in the Congress party, we are united..."

When asked about the MLAs who expressed dissatisfaction over the current leadership in the state, Shivakumar said, "I don't want any MLAs to speak, the party high command will definitely take action against those who are speaking a lot. I don't want anyone to support or shout at me, we will discuss and sort out the problems."

DK Shivakumar's statement comes amid statements from several Congress leaders and open calls from DK Shivakumar’s supporters demanding that he be made chief minister. Earlier today, Congress MLA Iqbal Hussain claimed that nearly 100 MLAs are in favour of Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar taking over as chief minister.

Notably, Surjewala was rushed by the Congress high command to Bengaluru amid the rumblings. He even did one-on-one meetings with state Congress legislators on Monday, amid renewed chatter over possible changes in leadership and internal unease within the ruling party.

The ongoing theories regarding the change is being considered as the aftereffects of the 2023 election result in which Congress scored a thumping win and Shivakumar was being considered a strong contender for the top post. However, the Congress leadership managed to convince him to settle for the deputy chief minister and Siddaramaiah was trusted for the post of Karnataka Chief Minister by the Congress High Command.