Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar arrived in New Delhi on Sunday along with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to meet senior party leaders, people familiar with the matter said, amid recurring speculation about the leadership of the Karnataka government. This comes after Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that he will abide by any decision taken by the party high command.
As per the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief’s itinerary, Shivakumar and Karji traveled to the national capital from Kalaburagi after attending the foundation laying ceremony for development work in Chittapu, a Congress leader said on condition of anonymity. Shivakumar is expected to remain in the national capital on Sunday and hold meetings with senior Congress leaders on Monday, the leader said.
The visit comes amid renewed debate within Congress about a possible change in leadership in the state government after the presentation of the state budget for the period 2026-2027.
In recent days, some lawmakers, who are said to be loyal to Shivakumar, held a dinner meeting and discussed traveling to Delhi to urge the party leadership to appoint him as chief minister after the current budget session ends on March 27. However, the Congress leadership has not made any announcement regarding any change in the state leadership.
Earlier, Shivakumar said that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior party leader Rahul Gandhi brokered an understanding between him and Siddaramaiah when the Congress formed the government in Karnataka in 2023.
According to Shivakumar, the understanding includes sharing the position of Prime Minister for two-and-a-half years each. Siddaramaiah ended his term in November last year, which raised speculation about whether the party leadership might consider a transition in the coming months.
Congressional leadership has not publicly confirmed any such arrangement.
Siddaramaiah, who presented the state budget on Friday, said a day later that he would abide by whatever decision the party leadership took regarding leadership of the state government.
“I will do whatever the high command says. If they want me to continue as chief minister, I will continue. If not, I will step down,” Siddaramaiah said on Saturday.
Asked if he expects to present more budgets in the coming years, Siddaramaiah said it depends on the decision of the party leadership. He said, “I submitted 17 budgets. I submitted the largest number of budgets. If the senior leadership gives me a chance, I will submit budgets in the coming years as well.”
Siddaramaiah’s budget for 2026–27 was his 17th budget as finance minister and chief minister combined, the highest number presented by any minister in Karnataka.
While the budget focused on social welfare programmes, infrastructure spending and sectoral allocations, Shivakumar has not commented publicly on the document yet.
Earlier this week, Shivakumar said development work in his South Bengaluru constituency would continue regardless of the budget. “There is no need for budget expectations. We do our job without them,” he said.
Shivakumar currently holds the water resources and development portfolio of Bengaluru and is also the president of KPCC.
Apart from his visit to Delhi, Shivakumar is expected to host a dinner meeting for Congress MLAs and MLCs on March 10 to mark the completion of six years as state Congress Committee chief.
Many lawmakers are expected to attend the event, people familiar with the development said. Siddaramaiah is also likely to be invited to the rally.
