Senior leaders in Karnataka’s ruling Congress reacted to fresh leadership speculation by repeatedly asserting that any decision on the chief minister’s post rests solely with the party high command, dismissing talk of an internal power struggle.

No internal strife over state leadership: K’taka CongressHealth Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao said there were no formal discussions on changing the leadership. “No discussions going on. Some MLAs have spoken, that’s all. There is nothing like that. The CM and DCM have said that whatever the high command decides is final. These are all just rumours. All MLAs, CM and DCM are with the High Command. There is no dispute. There is no problem, no division in the Congress party, and we are all together,” he said on Sunday.

Home Minister G. Parameshwara echoed that position, stating that Siddaramaiah would continue as chief minister unless the central leadership decided otherwise. “The high command is watching everything, and when they feel there is a need, they will decide. They may be of the opinion that there is no such situation now, hence they have not said anything so far on the issue,” he said.

On Siddaramaiah’s tenure, he added, “Who made Siddaramaiah the CM? It is the high command, and until the high command says that Siddaramaiah will remain in the post.”

“As far as I know, the high command has not decided anything on CM change till now,” Parameshwara said, adding that he was unaware of any agreement on a rotational chief minister after the 2023 Assembly polls.

“Siddaramaiah was declared as the CM, following the election to choose the leader of the Congress Legislature Party, after the Assembly polls. There was no proposal on any change mid-term. Accordingly, Siddaramaiah is the CM and is preparing for the state budget, which he will present next month,” he said.

Reacting to remarks by MLC Yathindra Siddaramaiah, the chief minister’s son, Parameshwara said, “Ultimately, whatever the high command decides is final, what I or someone else says doesn’t matter. Depending on the situation, if there is need, the high command will tell their decision.”

He also rejected suggestions of confusion within the party. “There was a Congress Legislature Party meeting recently, if there was any confusion, the issue would have been raised, and the question would have been asked to the CM and Deputy CM.”

Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who recently met party leaders in New Delhi, declined to discuss the meeting. “I cannot disclose it. Time will answer everything… We are all politicians; politicians do whatever politics they want. There is nothing wrong with that. We have met. Why do you make a big deal out of it? We come here for government work, for party work. We come here for politics,” he said.

Yathindra Siddaramaiah had earlier said in Bidar, “My father, Siddaramaiah, will remain Chief Minister for the entire five years. There is no confusion on this matter.”

“At present, there is no indication from the high command regarding any change in the Chief Minister,” he said, adding, “As of now, there has been no official discussion on a leadership change.”

Arun Dev is an Assistant Editor with the Karnataka bureau of Hindustan Times. A journalist for over 10 years, he has written extensively on crime and politics.