DK Shivakumar to take oath as Karnataka Chief Minister on June 3

Senior Congress leader DK Shivakumar will take oath as the 25th Chief Minister of Karnataka on June 3 in Bengaluru, government sources said, days after his colleague Siddaramaiah resigned from the post after three years of intense power struggle.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held at the Lok Bhavan Glass House and is expected to be attended by senior Congress leaders, cabinet colleagues, party workers and supporters from across Karnataka.

The 64-year-old's appointment came days after Siddaramaiah stepped down as Chief Minister following consultations with the Congress high command in Delhi. The transition is being viewed as part of the leadership arrangement worked out by the party leadership.

Ending months of intense speculation over a leadership change in Karnataka, Siddaramaiah on Thursday resigned as the Chief Minister, paving the way for Shivakumar, his deputy, to take over the top post.

Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot accepted Siddaramaiah’s resignation a day after the 77-year-old leader submitted it to the Governor’s Special Secretary at Lok Bhavan in the Governor’s absence. Gehlot was away from Bengaluru for personal reasons.

The development, for now, marks the culmination of a prolonged power tussle within the Karnataka Congress, with Shivakumar long seen as a contender for the top post since the party’s victory in the 2023 Assembly polls.

At a breakfast meeting hosted at his Bengaluru residence on Thursday, Siddaramaiah informed cabinet colleagues about his decision to step down and indicated that Shivakumar would succeed him in line with the Congress high command’s directions, according to ministers present at the meeting.

The Congress leadership had recently asked Siddaramaiah to facilitate a leadership transition while also offering him a role at the national level along with a Rajya Sabha seat. However, sources said that Siddaramaiah has not accepted the proposed central role so far.

Shivakumar is expected to be formally elected as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party on Saturday, after which he will become the Chief Minister-designate.

The leadership change follows days of hectic consultations in Delhi. Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were summoned by the Congress high command on Tuesday and held a series of meetings with Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and party general secretaries KC Venugopal Randeep Surjewala.

Speculation around a “rotational chief minister” arrangement had persisted ever since the Congress formed the government in Karnataka in 2023. According to the widely discussed formula, Siddaramaiah was expected to step down after completing two-and-a-half years in office, allowing Shivakumar to take charge for the remaining term. Neither the Congress leadership nor Siddaramaiah had publicly acknowledged such an arrangement at the time.

The rumours intensified after Siddaramaiah completed 2.5 years of his tenure in November last year.

Amid the leadership transition, Siddaramaiah, accompanied by his son Yathindra, met senior Congress leaders including Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge in Delhi on Friday, triggering speculation that the junior Siddaramaiah could find a place in the new Shivakumar-led Cabinet.

Several ministers from the outgoing Siddaramaiah government are also camping in Delhi amid discussions over Cabinet formation and retention of portfolios. Some MLAs close to Shivakumar have also come to Delhi to secure ministerial berths.

Sources said discussions between the Congress leadership, Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar on Friday focused on the structure of the new Cabinet, with indications that the reshuffle could include a mix of existing ministers and fresh faces.