'...Keep One's Word': Is DK Shivakumar's Cryptic Post A Reminder To Congress?

Amid speculations over a possible leadership change in Karnataka, deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar dropped a cryptic post on Thursday. 'Word power is world power,' posted Shivakumar. As the Congress

government in Karnataka completed the halfway mark of its five-year tenure on November 20, the power tussle within the party has intensified. "Word power is world power. The biggest force in the world was to keep one's word. Be it a judge, president or anyone else including myself, everyone has to walk the talk," Karnataka deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar posted on X, in what seemed a possible reminder to the Congress high command.

There was a stiff competition between DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah for the chief minister's post following Congress' victory in Karnataka assembly elections in 2023.

The Congress had then seemed to convince Shivakumar and make him Siddaramaiah's deputy, however, reports said that a compromise was reached based on the "rotation of chief minister" formula. According to the rotation formula, Shivakumar will be the chief minister of Karnataka as Siddaramaiah completes half term in office. But no such decision was officially announced by Congress then. Earlier, Shivakuamr has claimed that there is a "secret deal between five-six of us" in the party on the issue of the power-sharing formula. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday said the issue will be resolved after discussions with senior leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi."The high command- myself, Rahul ji and Sonia ji will together take a decision on the issue and resolve it," Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge told PTI, when asked about the issue of leadership change in Karnataka.While deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar had earlier claimed there is unity in the party, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has put the onus on the party high command to put a "full stop to the confusion." Congress leader Priyank Kharge is believed to have conveyed Rahul Gandhi's message to both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, and that they are likely to be called to New Delhi soon for a meeting with the intention of sorting out the issue.