Karnataka MLA says Shivakumar will become CM: '200 per cent sure'

A group of six MLAs backing Shivakumar reached Delhi on Sunday night.

Ramanagara MLA Iqbal Hussain said he was "200 per cent" sure that DK Shivakumar will become the next chief minister”.

"I always stand by that statement… 200 per cent, he will become the CM soon. The high command will decide. As our leader (Shivakumar) said, the transfer of power is a secret deal among five to six party leaders, and those five to six people will decide," he told Times of India.

According to PTI, a group of six MLAs backing Shivakumar reached Delhi on Sunday night. More MLAs are expected to join them.

Magadi MLA H C Balakrishna said the decision on who should lead the government rests entirely with the Congress brass. "We went to discuss with the high command to clear the confusion because a final decision is needed. Who becomes CM is not important; the current situation is detrimental to the Congress party. The high command should intervene and put an end to this," he told TOI.

Maddur MLA KM Uday said legislators also urged the top leadership to consider accommodating younger and first-time legislators in the upcoming cabinet reshuffle.

He told PTI that they received positive signals that the request would be considered.

Meanwhile, Shivakumar on Tuesday said he did not want to discuss the CM change issue publicly, as it is a "secret deal" between "five and six of us" in the party, and that he believes in his conscience.

Shivakumar, who is also the state Congress president, said that he doesn't want to cause any embarrassment for the party and weaken it.

After registering a landslide victory in the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections, the Congress was in a dilemma over who to pick as chief minister -- Siddaramaiah or DK Shivakumar. After much deliberation, Siddaramiah became the CM and Shivakumar his deputy.

However, reports claimed that the Congress had proposed a rotational chief minister formula to pacify Shivakumar. It was said Siddaramaiah had agreed to hand over the post after 2.5 years.