Congress bets on D.K. Shivakumar with eye on 2028 polls, Vokkaliga vote and Old Mysore region
Though elevation of Congress leader D.K. Shivakumkar as Chief Minister might on the surface essentially seem like honouring a reported power-sharing agreement as per which he was to take over the mantle after reaching the half-term mark, in reality the Congress high command appears to have made the decision with an eye on 2028 assembly and 2029 Lok Sabha polls.
Sources in the Congress point out that even if Siddaramaiah had been allowed to complete the full five-year term, the party would have faced a leadership crisis at the end of his term in 2028 as he would have been 80 by then and would not have been in a position to lead the party in the next polls. Elevating the 64-year-old Mr. Shivakumar now would help in empowering him and putting him in a better position to lead the party in 2028 polls.
The Congress, which is in power in Southern states of Telangana and Kerala besides being in alliance with the ruling TVK in Tamil Nadu, feels that it has the potential to retain power in Karnataka in 2028 when the State goes to elections. Though Karnataka’s history shows that no ruling party has retained power in the last four decades, the Congress high command feels that the party can break this trend if a “go-getter” leader like Mr. Shivakumar takes over.
By betting on Mr. Shivakumar, who hails from the Vokkaliga community that has a dominant presence in the Old Mysore region, the Congress has clearly indicated that it is looking at consolidating its gains made in 2023 in this region.
-THB
