Karnataka Power Tussle: Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar Hold Second Breakfast Meet Amid Leadership Deadlock

16 hours ago

On this Special Report, Senior Journalists BS Arun and RK Upadhya discuss the deepening political crisis in Karnataka. The focus is on the second 'breakfast meeting' between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, described as mere 'optics management' amid silence from the Congress High Command in Delhi. RK Upadhya highlights the controversy surrounding the Bengaluru tunnel project, stating, 'From 18,000 crores, now it is going up to 42,000 crores... this is ill-advised, ill-conceived, unscientific.' The discussion also explores the leadership puzzle, with BS Arun noting that Siddaramaiah remains the 'mass leader' supported by AHINDA groups.

Transcript

00:00Let me bring in on this broadcast B.S. Arun, Senior Journalist and R.K. Upadia, Senior Journalist.

00:05Mr. Arun, I'd like to begin with you on what we're seeing right now in Karnataka.

00:10A second breakfast meeting while there's pin-drop silence in Delhi.

00:15We all thought that over the weekend, you know, Akshay would shift from Karnataka to Delhi,

00:18that the high command would kind of get the wheels turning to take a decision.

00:22None of that happening, sir. It's only optics management.

00:24Well, it shows that the Congress high command is in no hurry to resolve the Karnataka power crisis.

00:33They have shown it again and asked Shukumar and Sidhra Mayer to hold a breakfast meeting.

00:39Now, there is not just one, but two breakfast meetings.

00:43There was no breakthrough in the first meeting.

00:45I don't think there will be any breakthrough either in the second.

00:48But as you rightly pointed out, the decision has to be taken in Delhi.

00:53The Congress high command, you know, has given sort of an indication for quite some time

01:00that it's not too concerned about the developments that are happening in Bangalore, in Karnataka.

01:07Because, you know, the statement war had been going on for quite some time.

01:12We saw a two-tier war just before the two met for breakfast.

01:18Correct.

01:18You know, about the world power and the world power.

01:21So, this is sort of, you know, the cold war happening between the two.

01:26But the high command has not opened its eyes.

01:28All that happened was Karge coming to Bangalore and meeting some of the leaders.

01:34And Sidhra Mayer going to Delhi and meeting Rahul Gandhi, while DK Shukumar cut sort of, you know,

01:42a loss of face for him that although he went to Delhi, he could not meet the Congress leadership.

01:48So, to that extent, you know, there is some sort of a setback for Shukumar, both in Delhi

01:55as well as in Bangalore, in the sense that the breakfast meeting, you know, turned out to be a damn squib.

02:02There was no major development as regards the leadership tassel that they, you know,

02:08repeated the mantra of being united, you know, fighting the elections together.

02:13And, you know, it was more of a blah-blah than anything that was concrete that was told to the media, at least.

02:19We don't know what exactly they discussed, whether they agreed to anything or whether they disagreed.

02:27But the fact is, the leadership tassel has remained unresolved as of today.

02:34Let me turn this around, Mr. R.K. Upadhyay.

02:36Are we reading too much into these breakfast meats?

02:38This is the chief minister, the deputy chief minister, getting together for a huddle.

02:42Maybe they're discussing governance.

02:44Maybe they're discussing administrative issues in the state of Karnataka.

02:48At the end of the day, do they have a great working relationship?

02:51And so, therefore, as a result, governance isn't really taking a hit.

02:55They're being patient with whatever the high command will decide.

03:00Actually, that two of them can have as many breakfast meetings as they want.

03:04I mean, after all, one has to have a breakfast in the morning.

03:07So, you know, instead of just to eat li, vada and puri,

03:09they could have a naughty chicken, as Shukumar has promised.

03:12And some politics.

03:13So that is good for them.

03:14I mean, but that apart, I don't think any substantial issues are being discussed.

03:19And it cannot happen just between the two.

03:22There has to be central mediators, you know, who can sit down with them and then work out a solution.

03:27Otherwise, you're just, you know, getting nowhere.

03:30My hunch is, you know, Rahul Gandhi is least interested in change of leadership.

03:35You know, it goes against the grain of his social justice agenda.

03:39And he feels that Siddharamaya is the best person right now.

03:43And if he is removed from power, it will go against his own policy.

03:48Because after all, Congress has only three chief ministers.

03:50And Siddharamaya belongs to the OBC.

03:52And replacing him with somebody like Shukumar will send out a bad, you know, wrong message across the country.

03:58That could be one thinking.

04:00But then, you see, I'm also looking at what could happen if, you know, Shukumar gets a chance.

04:06See, after all, if at all he has been given a promise, then, you know, that has to be honored sometime or the other.

04:12Probably in a couple of months or three months or whatever.

04:15But then what is Shukumar going to bring to the table?

04:18I mean, as citizens, we are not really enthusiastic about Shukumar taking over.

04:23Because we know what he is capable of or not capable of.

04:27So you're suggesting you're going to call Siddharamaya over a DK Shriv Kumar.

04:30Yeah, you see, looking at that, see, Shukumar has been very undemocratic in his style of functioning.

04:38And, you know, he's very rude with his own MLAs.

04:41And he's not very polite with the people who go to meet him.

04:44And then when it comes to the projects that he has taken up, he doesn't even like well-meaning criticism.

04:50Look at the tunnel project he has taken up.

04:52I mean, he has been passionately following it.

04:54And then look at the cost that is involved.

04:56And every expert has criticized it.

04:59And then from 18,000 crores, now it is going up to 42,000 crores.

05:04And yesterday there was a meeting of experts across the board from Indian Institute of Science and so many organizations.

05:09All of them said this is ill-advised, ill-conceived, unscientific and financially ruining everything.

05:16But this man doesn't want to listen to anybody.

05:19Doesn't want to listen to anybody.

05:20And everybody has pointed out the best way to solve the traffic problem in Bangalore is have more mass transport, have more metros.

05:28No, but are you suggesting then, Mr. Upadhyar, that you believe that Sidramaya is the better chief minister of the two?

05:34No, I don't think.

05:35Yes, naturally.

05:36I mean, you know, as it stands, he's at least more, you know, balanced.

05:40He has carried everybody along.

05:42And Sidramaya, you know, that's the reason why, you know, MLS like him.

05:47Mr. Arun, what do you think?

05:48Kumar is not able to get the support from the MLAs.

05:50Mr. Arun, what do you think?

05:51Do you think that ultimately it comes down to the fact that Sidramaya is someone who the MLAs prefer,

05:57that he has the support of most number of MLAs because of the administrator that he is?

06:03Well, it's not just administration.

06:05It's because, you know, he is the leader of the minorities, of the backward classes and of the Dalits.

06:11That's the reason why he commands the respect as well as the support of a majority of the 135 Congress MLAs.

06:20And that was the reason why when there was power tussled at the beginning of when the Congress came back to power,

06:32it was Sidramaya who made it through and not Shukumar.

06:36It was because of the strength.

06:38It was because he is the mass leader in Karnataka.

06:41He commands, you know, that sort of a support among the masses in the interstate, which Shukumar doesn't.

06:49Shukumar's popularity or base is confined to a specific region.

06:53And his support base among the MLAs is mainly from the local ligas.

06:57So that's sort of a narrow support base that Shukumar enjoys.

07:02And that's the reason why Sidramaya, you know, scores over Shukumar.

07:08That's one reason.

07:09And as far as administration is concerned, you know, recently the caste census took place in Karnataka.

07:17And that was mainly because of the two reasons.

07:19One, Sidramaya himself wanted it.

07:21And number two, the Congress High Command, Ms. Rahul Gandhi in particular, pushed for it.

07:26So, it was the message that they sent that, you know, to the Ahida group, the black courts and minorities and Dalits, that we are with you.

07:39So, because...

07:40The biggest setback really for the Congress, if they upset Sidramaya, will be that particular vote bank.

07:46And that's why it's a hard decision for them to take.

07:49There's a possibility, though, that they are ensuring a truce between D.K. Shivkumar and Sidramaya

07:53because they see this dragging on in the sense that they don't think a decision will be possible right now.

07:57Perhaps in March, once Sidramaya manages that record of being the longest-serving chief minister of Karnataka,

08:03is when they will ensure that he has a graceful exit and bring in D.K. Shivkumar.

08:07That is one of the many possibilities.

08:09Thank you very much, Mr. Arun and Mr. R.K. Upadhyaya, for your time, for joining us here on India Today.

08:14Thank you very much, Mr. Arun and Mr. Arun and Mr. Arun and Mr. Arun.

Karnataka Power Tussle: Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar Hold Second Breakfast Meet Amid Leadership Deadlock

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