DK Shivakumar, 30 Congress MLAs hold late-night dinner amid leadership change buzz

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and over 30 Congress legislators, including some ministers, met for dinner late on the night of December 11, party sources said.

According to sources, ministers KH Muniyappa, Mankal Vaidya, Dr MC Sudhakar, MLAs NA Haris, Ramesh Bandisiddegowda, HC Balakrishna, Ganesh Hukkeri, Darshan Dhruvanarayana, Ashok Kumar Rai, and KY Nanjegowda were among those present in the meeting.

Expelled BJP MLAs ST Somashekhar and Shivaram Hebbar also attended the dinner.

Strife over the CM post again?

The dinner meeting came a day after CM Siddaramaiah, along with ministers and a few legislators considered close to him, met for dinner hosted by former Belagavi North MLA Feroz Sait.

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Though leaders termed it a casual dinner meeting, speculation was rife as it had taken place amid a power tussle in the ruling party, over the CM post.

Congress's halfway mark

There was a speculation about a change in CM when the Congress government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20, as it was believed that there was a power-sharing agreement between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar after the party won the Assembly election in 2023.

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As the government crossed the crucial date, activities intensified within Congress, and both the CM and the Dy CM met over breakfast at each other's residences on the instructions of the high command.

This was seen as a move to pause the leadership tussle between the two and to signal Siddaramaiah to continue as the CM for the time being, especially ahead of the Belagavi legislature session.