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The big talking point of this episode of To The Point is the power transition in Karnataka as Siddaramaiah on Thursday resigned as Karnataka Chief Minister.
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00:01Welcome, you're watching To The Point. Let's cut across to the latest news break that is coming in and that
00:06is that Siddharamaya is on his way to the national capital.
00:10What's unfolding? Big challenge for the party leadership to convince Siddharamaya to take up the Rajya Sabha position.
00:17Well, he is on that note coming to Delhi. Word is that in all probability he will be turning down
00:24the Rajya Sabha spot.
00:26However, he has a full list in hand. He will be meeting Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi at 10 Janpat.
00:33Rahul Gandhi likely to repeat his request to Siddharamaya to take up a bigger national role which has come to
00:40Delhi where Congress national politics is concerned and take the position of a Rajya Sabha seat.
00:48He will be accompanied by state in charge, Randeep Singh Surjewala. He will come to meet the party high command
00:53and have a one-on-one meeting with Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi.
00:57Well, our sources in Bengaluru tell us that he has a list of his loyalists that he wants accommodated in
01:05the cabinet and possibly given the position of Deputy Chief Minister.
01:09The course of action for Siddharamaya will be discussed thereof. The party leadership will, of course, try and persuade Siddharamaya
01:17to contribute to the organization.
01:19But it seems he's made up his mind. He is a regional satirab, doesn't quite understand or is made for
01:27national, central politics.
01:28would want to restrict himself to the role of what, at least we are picking up, of an MLA.
01:35We'll spend his year and a half there in Bengaluru and continue to follow the Congress ideologies, what we're getting
01:41from people close to Siddharamaya.
01:44But he does have a list of his loyalists that he wants accommodated as Deputy CM and Cabinet Ministers.
01:50I want to bring in my colleague Moshmi who's joining us. Moshmi, what's more?
01:59So this is the biggest challenge, Preeti, for the party high command and this is the toughest part.
02:04You know, having a very smooth flow of events since the day before, the party high command knows that this
02:12is the tough ask.
02:13And having not really been very willing to take that offer of the Raj Sabha, which we had said that
02:21he's been offered the Raj Sabha,
02:23you know, Rahul Gandhi would be in all likelihood repeating that request and also deciding a more detailed role for
02:32Siddharamaya
02:33in terms of the entire next two, three years of battle with the BJP and the upcoming 2029 Lok Sabha
02:42elections.
02:43Now that really means that, it means that the party high command wants Siddharamaya to change his political terrain from
02:52Karnataka to Delhi
02:53and that's not going to be easy, easy a request to put to Siddharamaya who's already resigned as the Chief
03:01Minister of Karnataka.
03:02We'll have to wait and see how he really responds.
03:05But I can't but help connect the entire dots as far as, you know, the Kerala events are concerned where
03:12KC Vinogopal was not chosen
03:15and Veeri Satishan got back the trophy of the CM ship.
03:20Perhaps Rahul Gandhi, you know, would have set that template and then it would have been difficult for Siddharamaya to
03:28say no to Rahul Gandhi
03:31as far as stepping down is concerned and perhaps that persuasion from Rahul Gandhi could actually do the job.
03:38Alright, Moshmi, thank you. We're going to be, she'll be joining us.
03:41Siddharamaya is going to be in the National Capital this evening, late evening rather, and you keep a watch on
03:47all developments.
03:47Meanwhile, let's quickly shift focus to who will be now the new Chief Minister of Karnataka and that is DK
03:53Shivkumar.
03:54But after months of intense speculation, Karnataka's power centre has shifted.
04:00This is DK Shivkumar's era from here on.
04:10For three long years, he waited in the wings.
04:15The loyalist, the strategist, the Congress troubleshooter who fought the battle but had to settle for number two.
04:26And now, that wait appears to finally be ending.
04:31After months of public messaging and closed-door power tussles within the Karnataka Congress,
04:37DK Shivkumar is set to take over the top job.
04:40The chief minister's chair that slipped away from him in 2023.
04:47The decision moment came at Siddharamaya's breakfast meeting with cabinet colleagues,
04:52where the veteran leader announced his decision to step down.
04:57The visuals that followed carried a powerful political message.
05:01DK Shivkumar touching Siddharamaya's feet.
05:04The two leaders embracing warmly.
05:06An unmistakable display of unity after months of speculation over a succession battle.
05:16Soon after, Siddharamaya submitted his resignation to the governor's secretary.
05:21With DK Shivkumar by his side.
05:23A carefully choreographed signal from the Congress leadership that the transition is smooth.
05:35Born in a farming family in Kanakpura, Shiva Kumar won his first election in 1989 at the age of 27.
05:43Since then, he has never lost an assembly election, emerging as one of Karnataka's sharpest political operators
05:50and the Congress party's go-to crisis manager.
05:54And now, after years of waiting, the man who protected governments may finally get to lead one.
06:01But the top job comes with enormous pressure.
06:06From consolidating the Vokaliga leadership base, balancing the Vokaliga Ahinda's social equation,
06:14managing Lingayat expectations and Siddharamaya loyalists,
06:17to handling cabinet distribution and taking on an aggressive BJP JDS opposition.
06:23The real challenge begins now.
06:26DK Shivkumar also enters the top office as one of India's wealthiest politicians,
06:31with declared assets worth over 1,400 crore rupees.
06:36From Kanakpura's fields to Karnataka's seat of power.
06:41DK Shivkumar's long political climb appears complete.
06:46But for the Congress strongman, who waited years for this moment,
06:51the toughest phase of his leadership may only just be beginning.
06:55Bureau Report, India Today.
07:02Alright, let's decode the latest political development.
07:06It is going to be now.
07:07DK Shivkumar, the new Chief Minister of Karnataka.
07:10Joining me is R.K. Upadhyay, Senior Journalist.
07:12Rashid Kidwai, Author, Political Commentator.
07:15Shekhar Ayer, Senior Journalist.
07:16I'd like to begin with Rashid Kidwai.
07:18Because, Mr. Kidwai, I believe, sometimes in politics, timing is everything.
07:23But when you're writing books, timing is also everything.
07:26And I believe there's a book coming up where you have written on DK Shivkumar.
07:33Prithee, that was beyond me.
07:35I mean, in the sense, I had no role.
07:37It's just a mere coincidence and it's an independent account.
07:40So, I don't know whether it's written for the readers, whether Mr.
07:43But for someone who studied DK Shivkumar, Mr. Kidwai, clearly, for literary purpose and political purpose,
07:51because you're both an author and a political analyst, how do you read the developments?
07:56I think it's very interesting.
07:58Prithee, I have documented that 150 leaders of some consequence have left the Congress since 2014.
08:04And it led to, you know, Himalata Bishma Sarma becoming a very effective and powerful chief minister of Assam
08:11when he switched sides and went to the BGP.
08:13Now comes the counter-narrative.
08:15If you're loyal, if you have a sense of gratitude, then you can become a chief minister.
08:19And this is something, since at 64, DK Shivkumar is not young.
08:23DK Shivkumar is not old.
08:25He is in the right place at the right time.
08:27He can lead Congress to victory in 2028.
08:31And then there is the Lok Sabha election of 2029.
08:33So, there are a lot of opportunities are there.
08:36There are a lot of challenges also.
08:37But I think, more or less, Rahul Gandhi has corrected a kind of,
08:42that lapse that he was about to make in Kairzlam.
08:45And this is a great comeback because, you know, the honor and the prestige of the Communist High Command
08:51has been restored.
08:53The manner in which Mr. Siddhartha Mahi has been asked to leave.
08:56Remember, Siddhartha Mahi's rotational arrangement was there indeed, though it was denied for a long time.
09:03Then Rahul Gandhi gave him six months extra because he wanted to improve the record of Dave Rajar,
09:08longest serving chief minister of Karnataka.
09:10So, Rahul Gandhi got him on his side.
09:13And when Siddhartha Mahi was asked to leave, he left without any expectation.
09:19Now, what is being said, whether he'll get a Rajasama or not,
09:22I think the outgoing chief minister wants to do this,
09:25that he's not letting down his camp followers,
09:27whether his son will come in the cabinet or not.
09:29I have no idea.
09:31But I think a lot of young, you know, 50 percent people under 50 or under 60
09:38are going to be there in DK's cabinet.
09:40And that is going to be a new template.
09:42All right.
09:42So that's going to be a new template.
09:44Many would suggest that Siddhartha Mahi is not really cut out for national politics.
09:49He's a strong regional satrap, doesn't understand it, doesn't want to understand it.
09:53But I want to bring in RK Upadhyay, senior journalist.
09:55In all probability, Mr. Upadhyay, at least with what our sources are picking up,
09:59is that today, Siddhartha Mahi will tell the high command
10:02that he doesn't really want to take the Rajya Sabha route.
10:05But he has with him a list, we believe,
10:07on the men he wants accommodated in DK Shivakumar's cabinet.
10:12Is it as smooth, the transfer of power, as the optics seem to portray?
10:17If he made it amply clear, in a 45-minute,
10:21in fact, a monologue, there's not a press conference,
10:24where he said, I am not interested in national politics.
10:29He said, Kharge offered me Rajya Sabha see, I have declined.
10:34And he said, I'll continue in local politics.
10:38This one is very, very sharp and clear words.
10:41And he's true to his, you know, words,
10:44because he is not interested, he's made it clear a few number of times.
10:48And I'm sure if they press again and again, he'll say the same thing.
10:52Because, see, he doesn't fit into national politics,
10:54and all his politics is there for 45 years,
10:57and he knows Karnataka like the back of his hand,
11:01and he feels that he still has something more to contribute to the state.
11:05But I must tell you something about, you know,
11:07today's events that unfolded in Bangalore.
11:11There was something very unnatural about the world.
11:13I mean, it looked very, very choreographed.
11:17I mean, and, you know, the breakfast meeting,
11:20which happened without any incident,
11:22of course, breakfast meeting is a breakfast meeting.
11:24But what struck me was,
11:27Sridharamaya is supposed to be a mass leader,
11:29next only to Devaraj Aras and Ramakrishna Hedra.
11:33So, he has been chief minister for the longest term.
11:38And why was that there was no protest,
11:41spontaneous protest, so-called spontaneous protest,
11:44you know, saying that we will not let Sridharamaya go.
11:47We want Sridharamaya to remain.
11:49We are not allowing him to resign.
11:52Nothing of that kind was there.
11:53And on the contrary, as well,
11:56T.K. Sukumar is being offered the chief minister,
11:58you know, which he has eyed for so long.
12:01And there was no celebration.
12:03Of course, he had a reason.
12:05I think he's too nervous now,
12:07because he's still not sure whether it will happen or not.
12:10And I believe he very strictly told his supporters,
12:14I don't want you people to come to Bangalore.
12:17You see, the Vokkaligas are an emotional people,
12:21a very, very Jodhavi people,
12:24and they would have landed in hundreds and thousands
12:27from, you know, Manitia, Mysore, Chikmabur.
12:31Why do you call it unusual?
12:32Why do you call it unusual before I bring in Shekhar Raiya?
12:37Pardon?
12:37Why do you call it unusual, Mr. Dupathia?
12:40Do you think this is actually,
12:41finally the Congress has got its optics right,
12:44or do you think it's a smoke screen?
12:46I think there is a lot of, you know,
12:49uncertainty in both the camps.
12:52Siddharamaya as well as Shukumar.
12:54Shekhar Raiya, would you want to weigh in on that?
13:04Shekhar Raiya, can you hear me?
13:06Yeah.
13:07Do you want to weigh in on that?
13:09Well, this time the optics is being controlled.
13:12It's the slow release optics, if I can use the term.
13:16Well, what is coming out very clear is,
13:20Sidharamaya did not expect this kind of a decision from Raon Gandhi.
13:23That's number one.
13:25That is why whatever protests that were to happen,
13:28happened within the closed doors.
13:30In the sense, Sidharamaya held a meeting here in the,
13:33it is close to the George residence in Delhi.
13:36And subsequently, we have seen in the last 48 hours,
13:39all that steam that was coming out was within the closed doors.
13:42And there were a lot of suggestions that Sidharamaya should not take it lying down,
13:48number one.
13:49Number two, there should be a floor test in the sense,
13:52whoever should be the next CLP leader should be elected.
13:55That is a time when High Command decided to send Surjewala to Bengaluru,
13:59where it was because all that they want from a CLP meeting is the typical thing that Congress High Command
14:05wants,
14:05a one-line resolution being adopted that the High Command is authorized to choose the next leader.
14:10But this time, there are a number of loyalists,
14:12and some of them are very senior ministers,
14:14who know in the new setup they may not find a place.
14:17Because Raul Gandhi has made it very clear,
14:20he wants a new cabinet.
14:22Excepting for, you know, D.K. Shu Kumar,
14:26the deputy CM being elevated as CM,
14:29he wants a lot of new people to come.
14:31I think the age bar is supposed to be 50 and below.
14:35So, therefore, there is a lot of fear, apprehension,
14:38because many of those who are three-time ministers will have to go.
14:42Therefore, and the other thing, Preeti, we have to note one thing.
14:45See, there were two interactions, major interactions on the day Sidharamaya was told that he was stepped down.
14:51One was pre-lunch, and that was post-lunch.
14:54The post-lunch session is where the hard news was given that he has to go.
14:58And when Sidharamaya sought some time that he wanted to implement that reservation policy,
15:04the report which has been released, you know, officially or non-officially, I do not know.
15:09Now, the point is, Sidharamaya is the author of what you call the Ainda policy.
15:15Of course, Congress can say Ainda has always been its approach,
15:18and Sidharamaya gave it brief, more life to it, and patented it further,
15:22so as to being the best USP for the Congress.
15:24Now, question is, when he repeatedly says, and he told Rahul Gandhi here in Delhi,
15:30that he has no intention to become a Rajasabha member, he has no interest in national politics,
15:35he would rather remain a member of an MLA in Karnataka.
15:39Now, I will only take you back to the time when Kovaraswamy was chief minister,
15:45Congress, I mean, it was a JDS Congress coalition,
15:48and what was Sidharamaya doing till the Kovaraswamy government collapsed?
15:51We all know. So, Kumaras, I mean, Sidharamaya will be in Bangalore,
15:55and you can see that he'll be watching how Shiv Kumar proceeds.
16:00But the big question, Preeti, just one second, big question is,
16:03now, is this the team that is going to take the Congress to the 2028 election?
16:08Or will Sidharamaya bounce back just before the elections?
16:12You know, I don't want to get, you know, ageism in question,
16:16but, or get into narratives of that, but he is a certain age now.
16:20Is he looking at, but then, you've had the likes of Mr. Yadi O Rappa
16:23and Mr. Devogoda in Karnataka, so anything is possible.
16:26But last 30 seconds to all three of you,
16:29Rashid Kidwai, how do you see the next few days
16:31and the next few months go from here on?
16:36So, Mr. RK Paddy has been my colleague and a dear friend.
16:39I take him very seriously.
16:40But I think this time around there is not going to be a big drama.
16:43Because, as I said, Sidharamaya was told in November, December 2025
16:49that he has to go.
16:50He sought time till March and he was given time till May.
16:52So, and Sidharamaya is not Mr. Ashok Gerlod.
16:59He is not Mr. Bhopesh Bagheel.
17:01He is not going to let Mr. Rahul Gandhi down
17:03because Priti threw out from May 2023 till date,
17:08Mr. Rahul Gandhi stood by him.
17:10And one last thing, this socioeconomic survey,
17:14I think Rahul Gandhi must have told him,
17:16it's your legacy, implement it, I am with you.
17:19Just as Rahul Gandhi has given a thing,
17:21that please announce D.K. Shukumar's name.
17:24There is not a possibility about all these things.
17:26Final 20 seconds, sir.
17:28I think the biggest challenge now will be the cabinet commission.
17:33Shukumar will not have a free hand
17:34because he has to accommodate Sidharamaya's men
17:37and also his own supporters.
17:40And then also, I think this backward classes report,
17:44which Sidharamaya accepted the last few,
17:47is a little bomb that he has left behind.
17:49And I tell you, it will take off...
17:52And you think the bomb could spark?
17:54Definitely.
17:55Maybe...
17:55Okay, Shekhar Iyer, 20 seconds.
17:57Not immediately.
17:58Okay.
17:59But not immediately, but definitely.
18:01It has an ominous ring to it.
18:02Shekhar Iyer.
18:03Well, D.K. Shukumar has a huge challenge,
18:06but also an opportunity
18:07to emerge out of that,
18:10you know, that he being the tallest vocal leader
18:12to becoming, you know, acceptable to all sections
18:15and himself driving the Ainda policy.
18:18I don't know how will you do,
18:19but that's the kind of challenge
18:20that will take him to be the face of the Congress
18:23ahead of the 2020 election.
18:25Okay, I'm going to end it there.
18:25But it's a tall order.
18:27Okay, it's a tall order.
18:28Let's leave it at that.
18:29I appreciate all three gentlemen for joining us.
18:31That's it.
18:31We'll keep you posted on the swearing in ceremony.
18:34But right before that,
18:35you have Mr. Sidharamaya,
18:36who's back in the National Capital
18:38to have a conversation
18:39with the Congress High Command
18:40after adhering to what
18:43the Congress High Command wanted.
18:45Him stepping down,
18:46announcing the name of Mr. D.K. Shukumar.
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