As Siddaramaiah faces MUDA heat, 'loyalists' line up to replace him

Karnataka, one of the only three states under the Congress rule, has again been plunged into dramatic political turmoil, which it is known for. With Chief Minister Siddaramaiah facing sustained attacks from the BJP over allegations of irregularities in allotment of land by the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA), the state is again in the news for its characteristic high-voltage politics.

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A number of party leaders and ministers have been openly issuing bold statements, expressing the desire to step into the shoes of Siddaramaiah, if need be; these statements have been flagged by some state office-bearers to party president Mallikarjun Kharge.

A group of Congress leaders has urged Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, to warn those making such statements as they are “bringing down the morale of the cadre across the state”. Instead of fighting the BJP and JD(S), such leaders are “demoralising cadres”, who are “losing hope” in the government and the party, they said.

They asked the central leadership to “warn them against issuing such damaging statements in future in the interest of the Congress party and the state of Karnataka”.

“Those who took charge as ministers should focus on implementing announcements made in the Budget. They should listen to the grievances of the public and respond to their problems. It is wrong to go around claiming to be aspirants for the CM’s post,” a party office-bearer was quoted as saying.

MUDA fallout

Facing intense criticism from the Opposition, which has been demanding his resignation, Siddaramaiah has dismissed the accusations in the MUDA allotments as “baseless”. He has, in turn, accused the BJP of indulging in “vendetta politics” and trying to “destabilise” his government.

The debate around his future intensified after Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot granted the sanction to prosecute him in the MUDA case.

Siddaramaiah’s petition challenging the Governor’s sanction is being heard in the high court and the CM has also constituted a five-member ministerial committee to review and coordinate action in connection with a probe by the state government and investigating agencies into various “scams”, especially during the BJP rule.

Interestingly, however, those who have expressed the desire to replace him do not include Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, the man considered his foremost adversary in the party and his likely replacement in case things take a turn for the worse.

In fact, the clamour against Siddaramaiah is being raised by men perceived as his loyalists — according to reports from the ground, these include Home Minister G Parameshwara, PWD Minister Satish Jarkiholi, Industries Minister MB Patil, and Basavaraj Rayareddy, the financial adviser to the CM. Some others have also hinted at or openly expressed the desire to occupy the top post “if the Central leadership wanted”.

Loyalists’ strategy?

However, the adversarial comments by his perceived loyalists could be part of strategic manoeuvring by the Siddaramaiah camp to keep Shivakumar at bay, observers say, pointing to the fact that the Deputy CM has so far supported the CM. There have been, though, reports of “closed-door meetings” and senior leaders, including Shivakumar, travelling to Delhi to meet the top leadership.

Citing the political drama as an example of “rampant factionalism” in the Congress, the BJP is making the most of the situation. Former CM Basavaraj Bommai, terming it “a full-fledged fight” among Congress leaders, said: “I feel bad for Siddaramaiah. Congress leaders are competing for the post when he is occupying the chair. This indicates a lack of confidence in a leader.”