Bengaluru: Karnataka Congress president D.K. Shivakumar was elected leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) on Saturday, clearing the way for him to become the next Chief Minister of Karnataka, party sources said.
The decision was taken during a CLP meeting held at the Vidhan Soudha, where outgoing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah formally proposed Shivakumar’s name for the top post.
The meeting was supervised by senior Congress leaders and AICC general secretaries K.C. Venugopal and Randeep Singh Surjewala.
According to sources, the CLP meeting was briefly paused after the proposal, following which Siddaramaiah, Venugopal, Surjewala and other senior leaders held discussions in a separate room before finalising the transition process.
Shivakumar is scheduled to take oath as Karnataka’s new Chief Minister on June 3 at the Glass House, Lok Bhavan, Bengaluru.
A key architect of the Congress party’s organisational strength in Karnataka, Shivakumar served as Deputy Chief Minister in the Siddaramaiah-led government and has long been regarded as one of the party’s most influential leaders in the state.
The leadership change follows Siddaramaiah’s resignation on Thursday. Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot accepted his resignation on Friday and dissolved the Council of Ministers, paving the way for the formation of a new government under Shivakumar’s leadership.
With his elevation, the Congress aims to ensure a smooth transfer of power while maintaining political stability in the state.
