Karnataka cabinet talks hit hurdles as Siddaramaiah bats for his loyalists

The Congress high command may itself have been stunned by the alacrity with which Siddaramaiah agreed to step down as Karnataka chief minister to make way for DK Shivakumar; still, its quest to revamp the state’s council of ministers with the same swiftness seems to have hit some bumps.

On Friday (May 29), both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were in New Delhi for a day of hectic deliberations with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha’s Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi. The high command’s meetings, held separately with the outgoing chief minister and his expected successor, were to ostensibly evolve a consensus on the anticipated cabinet reshuffle while also finalising the party’s candidates for the upcoming Rajya Sabha and Legislative Council polls.

Kerala model? Talks hit hurdles

However, by late evening, party insiders said there were still some “unresolved issues”, indicating a gulf between the demands Siddaramaiah had made regarding representation for his loyalists in the new council of ministers and those that both Shivakumar and the high command were willing to concede. The only confirmation that came from Shivakumar himself was about a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) in Bangalore at 4 pm on Saturday to elect its new leader, who would, in effect, become the CM-elect.

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Sources said Rahul is keen on replicating the “Kerala blueprint” for the Karnataka cabinet formation.

“The aim is not just to showcase a smooth transition of power from Siddaramaiah to Shivakumar but also to ensure that the cabinet reshuffle takes place simultaneously so that the government can get back to work immediately. The high command would like to follow the Kerala blueprint where the CM and the entire cabinet took oath together. Also, Rahul is keen that just like in Kerala, there is a good mix of experience and young leadership in the Shivakumar ministry so while the reshuffle is expected to retain some seasoned faces, he wants a decent share of berths to be given to new faces (sic),” a senior party functionary told The Federal.

Four Deputy CMs?

While there has been feverish speculation in the media about the number of deputy chief ministers that the new cabinet is expected to have, with some claiming Siddaramaiah wants four of his loyalists inducted as deputies to Shivakumar, sources told The Federal the high command was amenable to inducting two deputy chief ministers, with one each representing the electorally crucial Lingayat and Dalit communities.

If Siddaramaiah gets his say, the party’s most prominent Lingayat face, MB Patil, could be inducted as deputy CM while G Parameshwara, the 'party’s perennial CM hopeful' and senior Dalit leader, could return as deputy CM; a post he held previously between 2018 and 2019. There has, however, been some speculation that Parameshwara, who served as home minister under Siddaramaiah before the dissolution of the Karnataka cabinet, was not keen on working as Shivakumar’s deputy.

If Parameshwara indeed sticks to this stand, the party would have to not only consider some other Dalit face to be elevated to the post but it will also need to find an alternative role for the outgoing home minister.

More berths for Siddu camp?

The other aspect in which the new look Karnataka council of ministers could resemble that of Kerala, if the party high command bends to Siddaramaiah’s wishes to compensate him for demitting office without any rebellion, is in the share of berths that his loyalists secure.

In Kerala, VD Satheesan was eventually chosen as the chief minister, edging out Rahul aide and AICC general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal, who had an overwhelming support among the newly elected Congress legislators. However, as Satheesan finalised his council of ministers, a bulk of the ministers from the Congress quota – as many as eight out of 12 – were seen as Venugopal loyalists.

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In Karnataka, while the contrast from the Kerala situation is that the new CM is being imposed on the CLP by the party high command despite Siddaramaiah continuing to enjoy the overwhelming support of the Congress MLAs, the new council of ministers could, like in Satheesan’s case, still be stacked by loyalists of the rival camp.

If a consensus between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar is not reached by the time the CLP meets in Bangalore on Saturday evening, sources said the high command could approve a list of 12 to 15 ministers to be sworn in alongside the new chief minister

Congress sources, however, said this disparity was “unavoidable” because of two primary reasons: firstly, since nearly two-thirds of the Congress MLAs in Karnataka continue to pledge their loyalty to Siddaramaiah despite the transition of power and secondly because Rahul is keen that the new cabinet has a healthy share of representation of minorities, backward castes and Dalits – the AHIDA social coalition of which the outgoing chief minister continues to be the tallest leader.

Karnataka can have a maximum of 34 members in its council of ministers. Sources said while Kharge and Rahul were of the view that barring a few vacancies kept as a buffer to win over any discordant voices later, the new council of ministers must be filled to capacity.

To keep all camps happy?

This, the high command believes, will also give ample scope for loyalists of the state Congress’s three main factions – one led by Siddaramaiah, one by Shivakumar and the third by Congress president Kharge himself – to be adequately accommodated.

However, if a consensus between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar is not reached by the time the CLP meets in Bangalore on Saturday evening, sources said the high command could approve a list of 12 to 15 ministers to be sworn in alongside the new chief minister – possibly as early as on Sunday (May 30) – and then go in for a cabinet expansion at a later date.

A senior party leader said the party high command had “strictly cautioned” both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar against speaking to the media on the cabinet formation talks.

A similar secrecy had been exercised by the party when it was finalising the cabinet formation for Kerala earlier this month. This, perhaps, explains why information of possible cabinet inductees that otherwise leaks as if the Congress were a colander was hard to come by despite the high command's protracted discussions with Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar on Friday.

Sources said Siddaramaiah may have stood down as CM without any show of dissent, but he is keen to retain his clout over the government by ensuring cabinet berths for a large number of loyalists, which is also expected to help him keep Shivakumar reined in.

Whether the high command humours Siddaramaiah’s whim is now to be seen.