BJP accuses Kharge of fuelling Siddaramaiah–Shivakumar power tussle in Karnataka

Amid discussions over possible organisational changes within the Karnataka unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP national general secretary and state in-charge Radha Mohan Das Agrawal on Thursday shifted focus to the ruling Congress government, accusing party president Mallikarjun Kharge of waiting for a political confrontation between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar in hopes of emerging as a consensus candidate for the chief minister’s post.

Speaking at the BJP’s state headquarters, Jagannath Bhavan, Agrawal referred to continuing discussions surrounding leadership-sharing arrangements within the Congress as the Karnataka government completes three years in office.

“Kharge is instigating a fight between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar like two cats while acting like a monkey in Delhi,” Agrawal said. “Kharge is waiting for them to fight so he gets a chance to become chief minister. There aren’t two faces for CM here. There are three people.”

The remarks come amid continued speculation within the Congress over whether Shivakumar could replace Siddaramaiah later in the government’s tenure under an alleged power-sharing understanding reached after the party’s 2023 Assembly victory. Supporters of Shivakumar have repeatedly argued that he should be given the opportunity to lead the government for the remaining term.

Agrawal also alleged that internal differences had weakened the Congress government and claimed that some ruling party legislators were in touch with the BJP.

“Several Congress MLAs are in touch with us,” he said. “Even if Assembly elections are held tomorrow, people will defeat Congress and give BJP a chance to form the government.”

He further accused the state administration of pushing Karnataka into financial stress and suggested governance had suffered due to factional infighting.

“For the last six to seven months, there has been no government here. They are fighting among themselves,” he said.

Agrawal also criticized the implementation of the Congress government’s welfare guarantees, alleging that promises had not been delivered effectively.

“There is a failed, corrupt government in the state. It is an appeasement-based government. It has cheated the people of Karnataka. Even the guarantees have not been implemented properly,” he said.

The comments came a day after the BJP held an organisational meeting in Bengaluru under the leadership of party national vice-president Baijayant Panda, where discussions reportedly focused on strengthening the party structure and expanding the reach of Union government welfare initiatives.

The developments have also sparked discussion within Karnataka BJP circles about potential organisational changes after May 25. However, party sources indicated that state BJP president B. Y. Vijayendra is likely to continue in his role.

Agrawal dismissed suggestions that Vijayendra’s performance was being formally assessed.

“Whether he continues as president or not will not be decided in a meeting here,” he said. “Assessment in our party is continuous.”

He added that leadership appointments in the BJP do not follow a fixed process and said organisational changes, whenever they happen, would naturally bring some restructuring within the party.

Recent political developments have also been viewed as strengthening Vijayendra’s position, particularly after the large turnout at the “Abhimanotsava” event in Chitradurga marking 50 years in public life of veteran BJP leader B. S. Yediyurappa, which many party observers saw as a show of organisational strength and influence.