Bengaluru: The newly-elected Congress MLAs in Karnataka are assembly right here on Sunday night to debate authorities formation with leaders eliciting their views on the Chief Ministerial candidate. Leader of Opposition within the outgoing Assembly Siddaramaiah and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President D Ok Shivakumar are sturdy claimants and front-runners for the coveted put up. In the May 10 elections to the 224-member Assembly, the Congress scored an emphatic victory with 135 seats, whereas the ruling BJP and the previous Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) secured 66 and 19, respectively.
The Congress Legislature get together (CLP) assembly is scheduled to start at 5:30 pm immediately, and the newly elected have already been instructed to come back to Bengaluru.
Both the eight-time MLA Shivakumar and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah have made no secret of their ambition to grow to be CM and had been concerned in a recreation of political one-upmanship previously.
The Congress had entered the marketing campaign part with the problem of retaining at bay the factionalism, particularly between the camps of Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, who had been brazenly rooting for his or her leaders, however the get together put a united entrance and ensured that no rift got here out in open and derail its prospects, beneath the mentorship of AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge.
Now the duty at hand for the AICC management is to finish the method of electing the legislature get together chief by taking all factions collectively.
Banners have come up in entrance of Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar’s residences right here, erected by supporters, congratulating them for Congress win and projecting them because the “next CM”.
While the 60-year-old Shivakumar is taken into account to be a “troubleshooter” for the Congress get together, Siddaramaiah has a pan-Karnataka enchantment.
If Siddaramaiah, who joined Congress after being expelled from JD(S), will get elected because the CLP chief, this shall be his second stint because the Chief Minister from the get together after having occupied the coveted put up for 5 years between 2013-18. Shivakumar had served as Minister in Siddaramaiah’s cupboard.
According to get together sources, the opinion of newly elected legislators shall be sought and relying on the result, they is perhaps requested to vote to elect their chief, if the necessity arises.
Shivakumar has been brazenly expressing his Chief Ministerial aspirations at numerous occasions, particularly those related with Vokkaligas. He had requested the dominant neighborhood, to which he belongs, to not lose out on a possibility with him because the KPCC president whereas declaring that S M Krishna was the final Vokkaliga to guide the get together within the polls after which went on to grow to be the CM in 1999.
In truth on this election, the Congress has considerably improved its electoral efficiency within the Vokkaliga-dominated Old Mysuru area (south Karnataka) and that credit score largely goes to Shivakumar.
Also, there have been situations within the get together that whoever has efficiently led as KPCC President in election, have been the pure option to be the CM, like within the case of Krishna and Veerendra Patil.
Siddaramaiah, who has seniority on his facet, is understood for in a position administrative expertise, and has the expertise of getting run a profitable tenure because the Chief Minister. He additionally enjoys the excellence of getting introduced 13 budgets for the state. Being a mass chief, he has appreciable clout among the many AHINDA (Kannada acronym for minorities, backward courses, and Dalits). The mega seventy fifth birthday bash of Siddaramaiah held final yr in Davanagere, was largely seen as an try by him and his loyalists to challenge him as the longer term CM.
Seventy-five-year-old Siddaramaiah who has already introduced that this was his final election, has been sustaining that the Chief Minister shall be elected by the newly elected MLAs in session with the get together’s excessive command.
There are additionally different contenders for the put up like former Deputy Chief Minister and ex-KPCC President G Parameshwara and veteran chief and seven-time MP Ok H Muniyappa — each Dalits and MB Patil– a Lingayat.
