Ending days of uncertainty and speculation, the Congress announced Siddaramaiah as the next Chief Minister of Karnataka and the State Congress chief, D.K. Shivakumar, who was insistent on getting the top job, will be the Deputy Chief Minister.
Their swearing in will take place on May 20.
The Chief Minister, Deputy CM, and a group of Ministers will be sworn in on May 20. A meeting with all the newly elected MLAs has also been called today evening in Bengaluru, the Congress general secretary said.
With both Mr. Siddaramaiah and Mr. Shivakumar insisting on the top job, government formation was deadlocked and reportedly took the intervention of former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to resolve it.
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Addressing a press conference along with general secretary for Karnataka, Randeep Surjewala, Congress general secretary (organisation) K.C.Venugopal said Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge took the decision after consulting senior leaders including Sonia Gandhi.
“The Congress President has authorised me to convey his decision. He decided to make Shri Siddaramaiah will be the new Chief Minister of Karnataka and Shri D.K. Shivakumar will be the only one Deputy CM of the state. He will also will continue as the KPCC President until the parliamentary election is over,” Mr. Venugopal told reporters.
Asked about any power sharing arrangement between Mr Siddaramaiah and Mr Shivakumar, Mr Venugopal said, ”The only power sharing arrangement we have is with the people of Karnataka”.
Soon after the official announcement, both leaders took to Twitter to say they would work as a family to deliver the five guarantees and the promises made to the people of Karnataka.
The formal election of Mr Siddaramaiah as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) will take place in Bengaluru where a CLP meeting has been convened at 7 p.m.
All through May 18, there were back-to-back meetings between Mr. Shivakumar and senior party leaders Randeep Surjewala and K.C. Venugopal.
The final breakthrough was achieved well past midnight at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence.
“D. K. Shivakumar has made a sacrifice for the sake of the party and the Gandhi family,” a source close to Mr. Shivakumar told The Hindu.
