Karnataka Elections: 'CM Post Comes Later, Party First' Says DK Shivakumar

Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar told The Quint that his first priority is to ensure the party's victory.

"Chief Minisitership comes later, party first always," Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar told The Quint during his visit to New Delhi on 5 April.

"My first priority is to ensure that the party wins a majority in Karnataka. On the CM issue, I will abide by whatever party decides," he added.

On 5 April, DK Shivakumar held a closed door gathering with with a group of journalists at a five-star hotel in Delhi.

For close to three hours, DK Shivakumar, his brother - MP DK Suresh and Naresh Arora of DesignBoxed, the firm hired by Shivakumar - engaged with the journalists, who ranged from current and former editors to political bureau chiefs, beat reporters and anchors.

The discussions mostly focussed on the upcoming elections in Karnataka, the Congress' prospects, local dynamics and of course the big question - who will be chief minister if the Congress wins a majority in Karnataka?

The CM Question

One editor after the other kept asking Shivakumar about his competition with Siddaramaiah for the chief minister's post in Karnataka, but the leader refused to comment on it either on or off the record.

"I will abide by what the party decides," remained his standard refrain.

As the meeting progressed and the same question came up in different forms.

One senior editor remarked, "You won't be CM this time" while another senior journalist said that due the raids and arrest the Shivakumar faced, he deserves to be CM more than anyone else.

The otherwise flamboyant Karnataka Congress chief remained silent on the issue throughout.

The sense in the Congress is that Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah are working mostly in cooperation for the duration of the Karnataka election campaign.

While there are some push and pulls especially on issues like ticket selection, the tussle has been much less than what was being anticipated.

"There is no tussle. The second list is ready. The remaining seats will also be decided soon."

DK Shivakumar, Karnataka Congress chief

Siddaramaiah, 75, is more senior of the two. He has a pan-Karnataka presence by virtue of being a former CM and also has a solid base in his own Kuruba community.

DK Shivakumar on the other hand is 60 and knows that he won't be the biggest Vokkaliga leader so long as former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda is around.

However, what works in Shivakumar's advantage is that he is known to be an organisation man, someone who didn't flinch in his loyalty to the party despite facing arrest and several raids at the hands of the BJP.

Those close to him say that he could have been deputy CM and his brother a central minister had he switched sides to the BJP.

Organisationally too, Shivakumar took over as Karnataka Congress chief at a time when the party was in a weak position and since then he has devoted a lot of time and energy into reviving the party's fortunes, especially by conducting Yatras and mass contact programmes.

The Numbers Game, JD-S a Major Concern

One issue that seems to be emerging as a key concern for the Congress in Karnataka is the numbers game. There is a sense in the party that the Janata Dal (Secular) can't be relied upon for a post-poll alliance and that it is essential that the Congress win a majority on its own.

"We will win a majority. I am confident of that," DK Shivakumar told The Quint.

He predicted a tally of 141 for the Congress in the 224-member Karnataka Assembly

DK Suresh, member of Parliament from Bengaluru Rural, concurred that the party will win a majority. Much less flamboyant than his brother, DK Suresh is known to be methodical and a keen tracker of survey data. He is known to conduct multiple surveys to get an exact understanding of the situation in every seat.

Suresh expressed quiet confidence in the Congress' prospects but said that smaller parties are in the fray to split anti-BJP votes especially in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region where the Congress is expected to do well.

Among the smaller parties that could affect the results in this region are the Bharatiya Rashtra Samithi headed by Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao and mining baron G Janardana Reddy's Kalyana Rajya Pragati Paksha.

However, not everyone in the party is confident of a majority. A major obstacle is the Janata Dal-Secular.

"The JD-S has to be restricted to 20 seats or so, not more. Anything more than this they get, will be at the Congress' expense," a Congress functionary told The Quint.

The functionary said that while the Congress is likely to be the single largest party, crossing the majority mark would depend on how well or badly the JD-S does.