Throws up googly for Rahul ::: Congress veteran Siddaramaiah confirms he "declined" an offer to move to Rajya Sabha ::: He is also opposed to giving chief ministership to Shivakumar

 Siddaramaiah has resigned as the Chief Minister of Karnataka after informing his Cabinet colleagues of his decision during a breakfast meeting hosted at his official residence earlier in the day. 

Though Siddaramaiah is said to have opposed D K Shivakumar's candidature as his successor, the Congress high command is learnt to have finalised on giving the latter his due. 

Siddaramaiah was keen that his successor should be a Dalit, with Home Minister G Parameshwara reportedly as his choice.

“I’ll continue in active politics. I have no interest in national politics,” outgoing CM Siddaramaiah said, dismissing speculation that the Congress high command could accommodate him in Delhi.

He later held a joint press conference with Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar amid dramatic political developments in the state. Karnataka witnessed a major political transition on Thursday as Siddaramaiah stepped down from the Chief Minister’s post, paving the way for Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar to take over the top job.  

Soon after submitting his resignation as chief minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaiah on Thursday made it clear that his political journey was far from over, declaring that he would remain active in state politics and had no interest in shifting to a national role.

Addressing reporters after submitting his resignation, the veteran Congress leader revealed that he had declined an offer to move to the Rajya Sabha, signalling his intent to stay rooted in Karnataka politics despite stepping down from the top post. 

“I was also asked about the Rajya Sabha. I declined it. I want to remain in Karnataka politics,” he said.

Siddaramaiah made it clear that his resignation followed directions from the Congress leadership. "I’ve told you all many times, when high command asks me to resign, I will resign," he said.

"Two days back, high command asked me to step down. I told them I’ll resign today. Hence I’ve resigned," he added. 

D K Shivakumar has been in the race for the chief minister since 2018-19. He is a Vokkaliga leader and Siddaramaiah - an OBC. 

Siddaramaiah belongs to the Kuruba Gowda community, which is a traditional shepherding caste and the third-largest numerically significant caste in Karnataka (after the Lingayats and Vokkaligas). 

Kurubas are classified as an Other Backward Class (OBC) in the state.  

In his third year of governance since 2023, Siddaramaiah had been planning to go in for a Cabinet restructure. 

Over 30 debutant Congress MLAs had petitioned the party high command recently for Cabinet berths during the proposed reshuffle.