"Can't Hold It Permanently": DKS Hints At Quitting Big Congress Post

Senior Congress leader DK Shivakumar injected fresh life Wednesday into his tug-of-war with Siddaramaiah - over the post of Karnataka Chief Minister - hinting he might quit as boss of the party's state unit. At a party event in Bengaluru this afternoon, Shivakumar said "I cannot hold the post permanently... it has already been five-and-a-half years and in March it will be six."

DKS then re-assured his supporters - many of whom put immense pressure on the Congress in June and July this year to have Siddaramaiah step down and Shivakumar take his place - that he will continue in the party's state leadership team. "Don't worry... I will be in the front line."

"It is a different matter - will I remain President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee..." he said, "... but in my tenure I want 100 Congress offices opened in the state. I wanted to relinquish this responsibility when I took over as Deputy Chief Minister... but Rahul Gandhi and (Congress boss) Mallikarjun Kharge asked me to continue. So, I did my duty."

After the event, Shivakumar told reporters he was trying to set an example. "No one can be permanent... " he said to a soundtrack of slogans anointing him the next Chief Minister.

On Tuesday DKS made another eyebrow-raising comment; on MLAs' ambitions of becoming ministers, he said, "Those who work hard will have aspirations. Can we say it is wrong?" And on a leadership change quipped, "Consult an astrologer..."

Why is DKS' remark significant?

Because after the 2023 election - in which the Congress thumped the BJP, on the back of a campaign orchestrated by DKS - Siddaramaiah and he faced off over the Chief Minister's post. Siddaramaiah's camp had then pointed to the party's 'one man, one post' rule which, if enforced, would have disqualified DKS, who was named its Karnataka boss in May 2020.

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What followed was days of hectic bargaining till the Congress opted for Siddaramaiah, who had backing from marginalised communities and the minorities, and a majority of the MLAs. And DKS was given a choice of two offers.

He accepted one that made him Deputy Chief Minister and allowed him to remain the Congress' state unit boss.

Siddaramaiah has insisted he will serve out his five-year term as Karnataka Chief Minister (File).

That settlement was accompanied by talk of a power-sharing deal that would see Siddaramaiah quit after two-and-a-half years. In June 2025 DKS' camp made pointed references to that 'agreement' which, if true, falls due this month. Then the Congress rushed in troubleshooter Randeep Surjewala - who brokered the original peace deal - to work his magic again

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But DKS' camp made equally clear, despite their man publicly asking them to stand down, that they would continue demanding a change in the state's top leadership. With that in mind, quitting as the Congress' state unit chief now, with that rumoured power-sharing deal deadline looming, will rob DKS' critics of a key argument in denying him a shot at the Chief Minister's chair.

The June-July chapter in the squabble ended with apparent amiability, with both men holding hands and high-fiving each other at a Mysuru event. "Our government will last for five years... like a rock," Siddaramaiah said. DKS grinned and stayed silent.

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