Internal bickering in Congress resurfaces as govt approaches halfway mark of tenure subsequent month

As the ruling Congress in Karnataka approaches the halfway mark in November, the interior bickering within the get together appears to be growing, with loyalists of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president D.Okay. Shivakumar making their very own calls for earlier than the get together excessive command.

Two points readily available

While loyalists of Mr. Siddaramaiah have been interesting to the get together’s high brass to have an effect on a Cabinet reshuffle, the loyalists of the Deputy Chief Minister have been looking for a change of management within the authorities.

Sources within the Congress maintained that the get together’s central leaders are anticipated to take a call on each points — Cabinet reshuffle and management change — after elections in Bihar in November.

Some leaders of the get together informed The Hindu that the get together’s high brass is anticipated to offer its nod to the Cabinet reshuffle, as the federal government would full half of its five-year time period subsequent month. The Cabinet reshuffle would supply a possibility for younger legislators to hitch the federal government whereas seniors work for the get together.

The get together, nonetheless smarting from the embarrassment brought on by its MLAs who spoke of an absence of growth and alleged corruption in departments by Karnataka State Contractors’ Association, discovered itself within the highlight once more as Congress legislator H.D. Ranganath, MLA for Kunigal constituency, reignited the difficulty of change of guard within the authorities. The MLA, a relative of the KPCC president, had undertaken a nine-day quick throughout Navaratri, to hunt blessings for Mr. Shivakumar to turn out to be the Chief Minister by this year-end, Congress sources mentioned.

Like prior to now, KPCC issued show-cause notices to Dr. Ranganath, and former Mandya MP L.R. Shivarame Gowda for his or her statements predicting that Mr. Shivakumar would quickly turn out to be the Chief Minister. By sending notices to each leaders, the KPCC chief appears to be sending out a message to the AICC that he was not prompting his loyalists to talk. Earlier too, the get together had issued notices to Chennagiri MLA Basavaraju V. Shivaganga and Ramanagara MLA H.A. Iqbal Hussain, each loyalists of the KPCC chief.

In Mysuru, Mr. Siddaramaiah asserted that he would full his five-year time period and hoped that he would full one other two-and-a-half-year time period with the assist of the get together excessive command.

No dissent, says Surjewala

Meanwhile, AICC common secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala dismissed experiences about any dissent within the get together.

“Our KPCC president is totally authorised to make sure that everyone toes the get together line and doesn’t converse past their transient,” he mentioned. “Some individuals get excited, both on account of their feelings or in any other case, and make statements that are past the remit and realm of the get together’s self-discipline…. I’ve requested Mr. Shivakumar to take care of them accordingly.”

However, inner bickering within the ruling get together has offered ammunition to the Opposition BJP to hit out on the authorities for the dearth of growth work and delay in dealing with floods in Kalyana Karnataka.