Rahul meets Kharge, discusses Cong govt formation in Karnataka

In the midst of a fierce competition for the position of Karnataka’s chief minister, Rahul Gandhi held a meeting with party president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday (May 16).

#WATCH | Congress leader Rahul Gandhi leaves from the residence of party president Mallikarjun Kharge.#KarnatakaCMPost https://t.co/Ea3dtsnlUk pic.twitter.com/5js8RpEDhh

— ANI (@ANI) May 16, 2023

According to reports, they engaged in discussions regarding the formation of the government in the southern state.

Also Read: Karnataka: ‘CM post is not ancestral property to be shared,’ says Shivakumar

Rahul drove to Kharge’s residence and held a closed-door meeting with the Congress chief. Congress General Secretary Randeep Surjewala, who is in charge of the party’s affairs in Karnataka, was also present at the meeting.

Kharge has held discussions with party leaders from Karnataka and the three observers appointed by him to oversee the Congress Legislature Party meeting in Bengaluru on Sunday.

Both Siddaramaiah and state Congress president D K Shivakumar are front runners for the chief minister’s post and both are lobbying for it.

Also Read: Karnataka: DKS to meet Congress leadership in Delhi today, says ‘will not backstab, divide’

While former chief minister Siddaramaiah is in Delhi, Shivakumar cancelled his visit to the national capital on Monday evening citing health issues, fuelling speculations that all is not well in the party.

Shivakumar arrived in the national capital Tuesday afternoon. After arriving at Delhi airport, he did not speak to the media and walked away with folded hands parrying a barrage of questions from reporters.

#WATCH | Delhi: Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar arrives at the office of his brother DK Suresh. pic.twitter.com/kBS2lilvqK

— ANI (@ANI) May 16, 2023

Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar will hold discussions over government formation in Karnataka.

In just-concluded Assembly elections, the Congress scored an emphatic victory with 135 seats while the ruling BJP and the former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19 seats, respectively.

(With agency inputs)