The ‘truce’ between Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar following days of ‘shadow boxing’ over leadership is temporary, a lull before the storm and a “strategic adjustment”, opposition parties and political analysts in Karnataka believe.
The Congress blamed the opposition and media for creating confusion over the issue.
After a month-long power tussle, the two leaders met for over breakfast at Siddaramaiah’s residence on Saturday and decided to bury the hatchet.
Also, the two leaders jointly addressed the press later, put up a show of unity and declared they will abide by the party high command. Thus, they sought to put an end to the row over chief minister change, in lines with a rumoured 2023 agreement on Shivakumar’s elevation 2.5 years later, i.e. in November 2025.
After the meeting, the CM blamed the media for creating confusion between him and his deputy. He also assured that he would ensure that henceforth all the confusions are sorted out.
Shivakumar stressed that the 2028 assembly election would be fought under the leadership of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi.
According to BJP leader Prakash Sesharaghavachar, the meeting that resulted in a truce was “less about resolving every disagreement and more about restoring working harmony”.
“This is just a temporary truce. Once someone becomes overambitious in politics, you can silence him for the time being but it will surge again.”
He claimed Shivakumar had instigated his followers to raise their voice in his favour.
“His loyal MLAs went to Delhi and some seers too came in his support. Now the DCM cannot go back. That will hit his reputation. He is now in a do or die situation, which he himself invited. He may remain silent for some time to start it afresh through media or some other means,” Sesharaghavachar said.
The party is now a divided house and its fight is now resembling Congress in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh where factionalism marred its prospects in the election, he said.
JD(S) MLC, T A Sharavana told PTI that the discord has already exposed the two leaders and their party before the public but now they are trying to cover up their bickering.
“The people of the state will not accept this show of unity. The government is unable to fulfill the promises made to the people and failed to carry out development works. Hence, the CM and the DCM staged the drama,” Sharavana alleged.
Veteran journalist and political analyst, Ramakrishna Upadhya said the Congress high command has done just a patch-up job, which is not going to last.
“Yesterday’s breakfast meeting came at the behest of the high command, which they (CM and DCM) did not volunteer. They had been at loggerheads. The breakfast meeting and the joint press conference was a fully orchestrated move by the Congress high command,” he said.
“Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar did exactly what they were told–that they were together, had unity, there were no differences and they will stick to what the Congress high command says. But after all these months and after the intense tussle for the past one week, is there any possibility of resolution. The result is zero.”
According to him, nothing has been achieved in the breakfast meeting as it lacked clarity whether the high command had made the promise to Shivakumar regarding elevation.
Congress spokesperson M Lakshmana insisted that there were no differences between the two leaders at any point in time.
“The story of differences is the handiwork of BJP and the JD(S) and a section of the media. If there was any agreement then it was an internal matter of the Congress and the decisions rested with the party. Why was the media so particular about Karnataka? It is because Karnataka is ruled by a non-BJP party. The intention was to destabilise the government and move towards Congress Mukt Bharat,” Lakshmana told PTI. Congress-mukt Bharat (India free of Congress) is an oft repeated statement of the BJP against its rival.
The Congress leader said power sharing was highlighted too much in order to create confusion and to tarnish the image of the state government. He sought to know, if there were such strong differences then why did the two share stage on Saturday.
He also said the opposition parties tried to target Shivakumar, who is considered as the Congress party’s ‘trouble shooter’.
“The opposition created a misunderstanding between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar to weaken the government. This was an attempt to ensure that the Congress does not come to power in 2028. Since BJP is weak in absence of leadership and is unable to defeat Congress, they are trying to create rift between the CM and the DCM,” Lakshmana said.
A veteran political observer said there indeed were differences between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar.
“Both leaders understood that continued confrontation would hurt them politically. Siddaramaiah needs a cooperative deputy for smooth governance, while Shivakumar cannot afford to appear disruptive at a time when he is seen as a future contender for the top job. The compromise therefore reflects political pragmatism rather than personal reconciliation,” he said.
In essence, the truce is a strategic adjustment. It keeps the government functioning, reassures the party leadership, and allows both men to preserve their political capital. But the rivalry beneath the surface remains, likely to re-emerge whenever the next moment of political opportunity arrives, he said.