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BENGALURU: Amid growing speculation in Karnataka over Siddaramaiah‘s tenure as CM, senior ministers G Parameshwara, HC Mahadevappa, and Satish Jarkiholi met late Tuesday night, a gathering that has sparked speculation that these ministers could be lobbying for the top post.
The meeting, which lasted for two hours at Mahadevappa’s official residence, was their third in the past few months.Reports indicate that the ministers might be aiming to intensify their efforts to secure the CM post for a person from a SC/ST community should Siddaramaiah’s departure become inevitable. Jarkiholi is an ST, while Parameshwara and Mahadevappa are SCs.
However, a senior Congress functionary, said, “The meeting was part of a larger effort to strategise for the future.”
The call for a functionary from SC, ST communities to assume the CM’s post has echoed in Congress for over a decade. With both communities rallying strongly behind the party during the 2023 assembly polls, these influential ministers believe the time is ripe to fulfil this demand.
“Parameshwara and Jarkiholi have been nursing ambitions to become CM, which is why they are advocating for a ‘Dalit CM‘. Given the support of both communities, party high command might find it challenging to ignore their request. Their strategy is to secure at least the deputy CM’s position if the high command selects someone else as CM,” another Congress functionary said.
Some observers view these meetings as a strategy to undermine deputy CM DK Shivakumar’s aspirations to succeed Siddaramaiah. Reports suggest that a purported deal struck by the Congress high command in 2023 entailed a shared chief ministership between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar for 30 months each.
Jarkiholi, however, denied that the CM’s position was a topic of discussion.
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