Karnataka cabinet: Cong leaders meet in Delhi to finalise ministers

Senior Karnataka Congress leaders, including outgoing CM Siddaramaiah and CM-designate DK Shivakumar, are in Delhi to finalise the new cabinet with the party high command. Decisions on ministerial berths and the Deputy CM are expected.

Congress High Command Finalises Karnataka Cabinet

Senior Congress leaders from Karnataka have converged in Delhi as the party high command along with outgoing CM Siddaramaiah and CM designate DK Shivakumar meet to give final shape to the new cabinet in the state. A decision on ministerial berths and the Deputy CM will be taken during the course of the meetings.

The swearing-in ceremony of Chief Minister-designate DK Shivakumar is scheduled to take place at Lok Bhavan on Wednesday (June 3) at 4:00 pm. Karnataka caretaker Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will join today's meeting with Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge ahead of DK Shivakumar's swearing-in ceremony as the Chief Minister. He also met External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar while he was in the hotel lobby as he was leaving for the meeting. He left from a hotel in Delhi to join a meeting with Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge. When asked what the agenda would be during his meeting with Mallikarjun Kharge, he said, "I don't know."

Intense Lobbying for Ministerial Berths

Speculation is rife that several ministers from the outgoing Siddaramaiah cabinet may be dropped to make way for fresh leadership. However, Yathindra Siddaramaiah, son of the outgoing Chief Minister, confidently stated that Rahul Gandhi previously assured him of a cabinet induction. Earlier today, Karnataka Congress MLA Priyank Kharge also met the party's national president in the national capital amid speculation that Priyank Kharge would likely be given the Top Post in the new state cabinet formation. The meeting comes as a massive political huddle is underway in the national capital, as top Congress leaders and ministerial hopefuls from Karnataka have flocked to New Delhi to lobby for coveted cabinet berths. With the Congress high command expected to finalise the ministerial list by today, the party is balancing a complex jigsaw puzzle of regional, caste, and social equations, alongside critical structural decisions regarding Deputy Chief Ministers and organisational leadership. According to senior party insiders and MLAs, the cabinet expansion is highly anticipated to be executed in two instalments to manage the immense internal competition smoothly.

Shivakumar Thanks Gandhi Family

Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister-designate DK Shivakumar today expressed gratitude to the Gandhi family for their role in shaping his political journey, a day ahead of his swearing-in ceremony as the state's next Chief Minister. In a post on X, Shivakumar said the Gandhi family had influenced his political career not only through leadership but also through the trust and encouragement they extended to him over the years. "The Gandhi family has played a defining role in my political journey, not merely through leadership, but through the faith they placed in me at different stages of my life," Shivakumar said.

Search for New KPCC President

Furthermore, with Shivakumar elevating to the CM chair, the party is hunting for an OBC candidate to take over as the next Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President to maintain a harmonious bridge between the party cadre and the state government.

Opposition Levels Criticism

Amid these developments, the opposition has levelled sharp criticism at the incoming administration.BJP leader and Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka dismissed the leadership transition as "a change of driver", characterising it as a failure of the party to address the state's financial woes. "The bus is already in the garage. Only the driver is changed, that's all. Siddaramaiah is leaving and DK Shivakumar is coming. The bus remains the same; there's no change in the bus. But it's just a change of driver," he said," he remarked. (ANI)

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