Deputy CM Shivakumar fumes at Minister Jarkiholi for his statement on replacing KPCC prez

PTI, Jan 16, 2025, 1:06 PM IST

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday hit out at Minister Satish Jarkiholi for his statement on replacing him as the party’s state president.

Shivakumar has been serving as Congress state chief since 2020.

“Can anyone get it (post) in the media? You can’t get it in the media or any shop. It is given as a reward for the work we do. Will the media gift it to you. These are new trends,” Shivakumar told reporters here.

Jarkiholi on Wednesday sparked a debate within the ruling Congress over the change of the state president, saying a full-time leader was needed to devote more time to the party in the state.

According to him, while there is a lot of discussion happening at the lower levels, it should come from the top.

Later, he clarified that he never spoke about replacing Shivakumar as the Congress president.

Taking a U-turn from his statement apparently after a rap from the party high command, the minister on late Wednesday blamed the media for twisting his statement.

“The reports that appeared in the media are far from truth. Some media reports were made to look grandiose,” Jarkiholi, who holds public works portfolio, said in a video statement on his Facebook page.

“I never spoke about replacing D K Shivakumar. I only gave some suggestions keeping in view the party organisation and upcoming elections,” he added.

He said such statement should have come from the top, but it came from the ground level, to which he belongs.

Meanwhile, the Congress state working president Manjunath Bhandary on Thursday asked seniors to refrain from making such statements.

The seniors who violate the high command’s orders are not disciplined soldiers of the Congress, Bhandary said in a statement.

According to him, the leadership of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior leaders Sonia Gandhi, and Rahul Gandhi are strong in the party.

“The party high command leaders will decide all matters such as when to change the KPCC president and the chief minister, who should continue or who should be the ministers. However, no minister should give a statement in this regard,” Bhandary said.

The decision on leadership change should not be discussed with the media. There is a high command in the party. If there are any issues, the party leaders should first bring them to the attention of the high command and not before the media, the Congress working president said.

He added that the high command has sought a report of those who have made such statements.