Present at the meeting were Ministers KH Muniyappa, Mankal Vaidya, MC Sudhakar, and MLAs NA Haris, Ramesh Bandisiddegowda, HC Balakrishna, Ganesh Hukkeri, Darshan Dhruvanarayana, Ashok Kumar Rai, and KY Nanjegowda, among others, the sources reported.
Expelled BJP MLAs ST Somashekhar and Shivaram Hebbar were also in attendance, as per the sources.
This dinner meeting took place a day after CM Siddaramaiah, along with ministers and a few legislators considered close allies, dined at the home of former Belagavi North MLA Feroz Sait.
Although the leaders describe it as a casual dinner gathering, speculation is high, especially given the ongoing power struggle within the ruling party concerning the CM position.
Read more: Congress high command directed no change in Karnataka leadership, says CM Siddaramaiah’s son
Rumors of a potential change in chief minister arose when the Congress government marked the halfway point of its five-year term on November 20, as it was suggested that a power-sharing agreement existed between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar following the Congress party’s victory in the 2023 Assembly elections.
With the government passing this pivotal date, activities within Congress escalated, leading both the CM and Deputy CM to meet for breakfast at each other’s homes at the directive of the high command. This was interpreted as a strategy to ease the leadership conflict between the two and to indicate Siddaramaiah’s continued role as CM for the time being, particularly in light of the upcoming Belagavi legislature session.
