Siddaramaiah in New Delhi; Shivakumar cancels visit

Supporters of Siddaramaiah shout slogans demanding him to be named the party’s pick for Karnataka chief minister, in Bengaluru on Monday. Pics/PTI

Chief minister aspirant and Karnataka state Congress president D K Shivakumar on Monday cancelled his Delhi trip, hours after confirming he would be flying to the national capital, fuelling speculations that all is not well in the ruling camp over the CM contender issue. He cited health reasons for the change in his travel plans.

The senior Congress leader is locked in an intense power struggle with Siddaramaiah over who will lead the party-led government, after Congress stormed to power by winning 135 seats in the May 10 elections to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly. Siddaramaiah, a former CM, had left for Delhi by Monday afternoon to meet with AICC leaders.

"I have some problem in the stomach. Doctor is coming in ten minutes. It's burning. It looks like some infection and I have fever... please let me be free..." Shivakumar told reporters. Sources close to him confirmed he is not going to Delhi today. Amid speculations about the number of MLAs supporting him and Siddaramaiah for the CM's post, Shivakumar said earlier on Monday that his strength is 135, as under his presidency, the party won the said number of Assembly segments.

D K Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah

He said he and Siddaramaiah have been called to Delhi by the party high command and that he will be going there late due to personal commitments. In an exclusive interview to NDTV, Shivakumar said, "Sonia Gandhi told me, ‘I have confidence in you that you will deliver Karnataka'. I am sitting here, doing my regular responsibility. You should have the basic courtesy, a bit of gratitude. They should have the courtesy to acknowledge who is behind the win." The Congress' central leadership will be deciding on the new Chief Minister, after its observers submitted a report on the opinion of the MLAs which they collected in the Congress Legislature Party meeting in Bengaluru on Sunday.

Also Read: Now, all eyes are on Siddaramaiah and DK

Will support Cong, but it has to back regional parties too, says Mamata

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee on Monday said her party will support the Congress where it is strong in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. However, to get support, Congress also has to back other parties, she said. This is the first time that Banerjee has cleared the air on TMC's stand on a possible strategy for Opposition unity in the electoral battle ahead. "Wherever the Congress is strong, let them fight. We will give them support; there is nothing wrong (in that). But they have to support other political parties also," Banerjee told reporters at the state secretariat. "Strong regional parties must be given priority," she said.