Bengaluru: Congress’ Karnataka unit President D.K. Shivakumar was unanimously elected as the new leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) at a meeting held at the Vidhana Soudha on Saturday, paving the way for him to become the next Chief Minister of the state, according to a statement from his office.
“The election took place at the Convention Hall of the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru in the presence of senior Congress leaders and legislators,” it said.
Outgoing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah proposed the name of Shivakumar as the new CLP leader. The proposal was seconded by senior Congress leader and former Home Minister G. Parameshwara and received unanimous support from the legislators present at the meeting.
Announcing the decision, Congress General Secretary, Organisation, K.C. Venugopal, said that Shivakumar had been unanimously elected as the new leader of the Congress Legislature Party.
Earlier, inaugurating the meeting, Congress General Secretary in charge of Karnataka, Randeep Singh Surjewala, informed the legislators that the process for electing the new CLP leader would begin with a proposal from Siddaramaiah.
Siddaramaiah then moved a one-line resolution authorising the party high command to decide on the selection of the new legislature party leader. The resolution was seconded by Parameshwara and was endorsed unanimously by all the legislators through a show of hands.
Following the passage of the resolution, Surjewala announced a brief 10-minute recess. During the break, Siddaramaiah, Venugopal and Surjewala held consultations in the Chief Minister’s chamber.
After the three leaders returned to the Convention Hall, the process of electing the new CLP leader was formally completed, with Shivakumar’s name announced.
Following his election, Shivakumar moved a resolution appreciating the services rendered by Siddaramaiah during his tenure as Chief Minister. He urged the legislators to support the resolution, which was adopted unanimously by the meeting.
The unanimous election of Shivakumar marks the culmination of the Congress’s leadership transition in Karnataka and sets the stage for the formation of a new government under his leadership.
The Congress announced that the swearing-in ceremony of Shivakumar as the next Chief Minister will be held on June 3 at the Glass House in Lok Bhavan.
Addressing a joint emergency press conference at the party office, state unit Working President and Rajya Sabha member G.C. Chandrashekar said the party had decided to keep the event simple and avoid inconvenience to the public.
He revealed that supporters of Shivakumar had planned to arrange nearly 1,000 buses to bring people to Bengaluru for the ceremony. However, the party decided against large-scale mobilisation, considering that June 3 is a working day.
“Since it is a working day, we do not want people in Bengaluru to face inconvenience. The ceremony should not be pompous. It should be a simple event that reflects the party’s commitment to public service. Therefore, we have instructed party workers and supporters not to organise large gatherings,” he said.
Chandrashekar appealed to Congress workers and Shivakumar’s supporters across the state not to travel to Bengaluru for the event.
“We request party workers and Shivakumar’s admirers not to come to Bengaluru for the swearing-in ceremony. Please cooperate in ensuring that normal life is not disrupted and that the event becomes a model swearing-in ceremony. The function should be as simple as possible and conducted in a manner that earns the appreciation of the people,” he said.
He added that after taking the oath, Shivakumar would travel across Karnataka and meet party workers and the public in their respective districts.
(IANS)
