HD Kumaraswamy; Siddaramaiah
NEW DELHI: Union minister and former Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy on Friday dismissed speculation about a possible change of guard in the southern state, asserting that it would not be “easy” for the ruling Congress to replace incumbent chief minister Siddaramaiah. “There will be no chief minister change in Karnataka as is being speculated. It is not easy for the Congress party to remove him,” Kumaraswamy told reporters in Bengaluru, according to news agency PTI. The Janata Dal (Secular) leader described the Congress stalwart as a “capable leader,” noting that he knows this well since Siddaramaiah had earlier been part of the JD(S). “He (Siddaramaiah) was with us earlier; others don’t know what he is. As he was with us earlier, we know what he is capable of doing,” Kumaraswamy said.Rumours of a leadership change have been circulating in Karnataka, with some suggesting it could happen after November 20 — the halfway mark of the Congress government’s five-year term that began in May 2023 — a period some political observers have dubbed the “November Revolution.” “I don’t have any belief in revolutions. Discussions have been going on about a revolution, but there will be none in my opinion,” Kumaraswamy remarked. When asked about deputy chief minister and state Congress chief DK Shivakumar’s chances of succeeding Siddaramaiah, Kumaraswamy took a swipe, saying, “He (Shivakumar) discusses with God every day about when he will be made the chief minister. It is between him and God.”Reacting to Shivakumar’s statement that a “revolution” would happen only in 2028 “when the Congress returns to power again,” Kumaraswamy added, “Many in this state in the past have said they will be chief minister or in power for the next ten or twenty years. You have seen what happened to them. Let’s see what happens.” Siddaramaiah, who joined the Congress in 2006 after being expelled from the JD(S) led by former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda, has recently reiterated that he intends to serve the full five-year term, subject to the Congress high command’s “decision.”