The Indian Express ·
Politics
Amid Karnataka Congress unease, the brief life of a Siddaramaiah statue
Former CM Siddaramaiah’s supporters installed his statue along path that his successor Shivakumar was scheduled to take, but officials removed it due to lack of permission.
On Wednesday night, a statue of former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah came up at a crossing in Kalaburgi only to be taken down a day later.
Even as Kalaburgi City Corporation officials cited no permission to take down the statue, local Congress leaders say the people behind putting up the statue “are yet to be identified”.
“The image of the statue being installed went viral last evening (Wednesday). We do not know who put it up. Some youth have installed it without bringing it to the attention of Congress leaders or Siddaramaiah fans in the region. So far, no one has claimed responsibility,” said Mahantesh Koulagi, a local Congress leader.
Commissioner of the Kalaburgi City Corporation Avinash Shinde said as of now there is no complaint registered on the issue. “The identity of those who put up the statue is yet to be known,” he added.
The nine-foot statue was installed late Wednesday by Siddaramaiah’s supporters near a junction that had earlier been named “Siddaramaiah Circle”. The site was along the route Shivakumar was scheduled to take to Afzalpur in Kalaburagi district on Thursday to launch several development projects as part of the Kalyana Karnataka Utsav.
As the installation was carried out without prior permission, officials of the Kalaburagi City Corporation, with assistance from the police, removed the statue by Thursday morning.
The episode comes amid growing differences among various factions of the state Congress since Shivakumar took over as CM in June. While the transition of power initially appeared smooth, disagreements over the induction of ministers have highlighted the shifts in the party’s internal power equations.
Soon after Shivakumar became CM, veteran Congress leader and MLC B K Hariprasad was appointed Karnataka Congress chief. The appointment was viewed within the party as an attempt to prevent the concentration of power in Shivakumar’s hands.
However, Shivakumar and Hariprasad have since appeared to be at odds on several issues. During the prolonged discussions over Cabinet expansion, Hariprasad said, “Whoever wants power and posts can go with Shivakumar. Those who want to strengthen the Congress and the hand of (Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson) Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, come with me.” His remarks came shortly after taking charge as Karnataka Congress chief.
Tensions were also reported after Hariprasad was purportedly not invited to an event marking 100 days of the Shivakumar government on September 10. Hariprasad is learnt to have expressed displeasure over the episode within party circles.
Shivakumar sought to play down the issue, saying the government had invited everyone, including Opposition MLAs, and that seating arrangements at the Banquet Hall in Vidhana Soudha were governed by protocol. He also described Hariprasad as “supreme in Karnataka Congress” and “above even the CM”.
The incidents have been viewed within Congress circles as part of a broader contest between Shivakumar and Hariprasad, with the latter seeking to strengthen his position as an OBC leader as Siddaramaiah’s influence gradually wanes.
Another issue that has caused concern within the party is the Enforcement Directorate raids on Public Works Department Minister Satish Jarkiholi. Congress leaders criticised the action, particularly in view of Jarkiholi’s position as a leader from the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community. Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka, however, alleged that the raids were an “inside job”, linking them to the contest over the chief minister’s post in the Congress.
Before the raids, Jarkiholi had been positioning himself as a possible successor to Siddaramaiah as the face of the AHINDA (minorities, OBCs and Dalits) bloc. Unlike Hariprasad, who aligned himself with Siddaramaiah only in recent years, Jarkiholi has been a longstanding loyalist of the former CM. However, the two are understood to have fallen out after Siddaramaiah stepped down as CM.
The differences became more apparent after Jarkiholi was not invited to an AHINDA event attended by Siddaramaiah and Revenue Minister G Parameshwara. A day after Siddaramaiah chaired the AHINDA silver jubilee convention at Palace Grounds in Bengaluru, Jarkiholi said, “AHINDA is not the property of anyone.”
The remark was interpreted within the party as an assertion of Jarkiholi’s claim to the AHINDA space and, potentially, the CM race for 2028. The ED raids, however, have since added another layer of uncertainty to his political positioning.
The renewed factionalism has drawn attacks from the BJP. State BJP president B Y Vijayendra described the Congress as a “divided house”. Hariprasad hit back on Thursday, asking Vijayendra to put his own party’s state unit in order before commenting on the Congress.
‘No clear successors’
Congress leaders privately acknowledge that the differences are being watched by the party’s central leadership. “This was expected after Siddaramaiah stepped down. Though there was a realignment to prevent concentration of power, it has not satisfied everyone,” a Congress leader said on condition of anonymity.
The leader said Siddaramaiah’s influence would diminish over the coming months and years but that he remained a significant force in the state Congress. This, the leader added, had made it difficult for other leaders to emerge as clear successors.
AICC general secretaries K C Venugopal and Randeep Singh Surjewala have also held meetings with state leaders. Congress sources described the meetings as primarily organisational, but said the central leaders were also expected to have discussed the factional differences with Shivakumar, Hariprasad and others.