Shivakumar to form panel to analyse Cong.’s poor show in Karnataka LS poll
Amid a game of one-upmanship between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on the demand for creation of multiple Deputy Chief Minister posts and replacement of the Chief Minister, Mr. Shivakumar on Monday asserted his authority by chairing a meeting of KPCC oflce-bearers to chalk out the party’s strategy for the bypolls to three Legislative Assembly constituencies and polls to urban and rural local bodies.
Sending a strong message against the demand for “one-man, one-post” advocated by loyalists of Mr. Siddaramaiah, Mr. Shivakumar held discussions on the Lok Sabha poll outcome with the party’s offlce-bearers and District Congress Committee chiefs and decided to form a committee to flnd out reasons for the party’s poor show in the election.
Against the expectation of winning 15 Lok Sabha seats, the Congress ended up winning nine. The factflnding committee will make a presentation before an AICC committee.
After the Lok Sabha poll, the Chief Minister’s loyalists and some senior party leaders have been seeking replacement of Mr. Shivakumar from the KPCC chief’s post. Mr. Shivakumar holds the posts of the State Congress chief and two major portfolios.
The KPCC meeting took several decisions on the organisation’s preparedness and readiness to face the elections. It passed a resolution on the necessity of holding divisional-level meetings attended by the Chief Minister, the KPCC president, and senior leaders for analysing the Lok Sabha election.
‘Futile attempt’
Sources in the party said Mr. Shivakumar told oflcebearers that “some are trying to remove him from the party president’s post. But they are making a futile attempt”. The party’s Central leadership is believed to have told him to continue in the post and issue show-cause notices to all those who violate party discipline. He and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge held a meeting in Delhi on Sunday.