No one knows what developments will take place after 2023 poll results: HD Kumaraswamy
Chitradurga (K'taka), Aug 18: Recalling the turn of events which led to his party and Congress joining hands to form a coalition government in Karnataka after the 2018 assembly polls, JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy on Thursday said no one knows what developments would take place post the 2023 election results.
The former Chief Minister said this after a Vokkaliga community event here, in which he shared the stage with State Congress president D K Shivakumar, who cryptically spoke about his Chief Ministerial aspirations and sought the community's support.
Kumaraswamy and Shivakumar are influential leaders from the Vokkaliga community, which has predominant presence in the old Mysuru or southern Karnataka region.
"I'm in my own struggle (political), we will put in our party's effort, you put in yours. Who knows God will give power to whom... No one knows what developments will take place after the poll results," Kumaraswamy said in response to a question on whether he would stand in support of Shivakumar if the situation arises.
Speaking to reporters here, he said the Congress leaders, in the 2018 poll campaign, had appealed to people to not vote for JD(S), alleging that it was BJP's 'B team', and thereby ensured the regional party doesn't get community (minority/Muslim) votes.
"...but, we (JDS) joined hands with the same Congress after the polls. Who knows what will happen in the next election. Let the election result come, we will discuss it after that," he added.
Responding to a question on Shivakumar's Chief Ministerial aspirations, Kumaraswamy said it is not in his hands, and noted that, for it to happen he has to "overtake" Siddaramaiah, who is another aspirant for the post, in case the Congress comes to power.
"Will he (Siddaramaiah) let him (Shivakumar) become the Chief Minister so easily?" he asked.
Siddaramaiah (Congress Legislature Party leader) and Shivakumar are nursing ambitions for the top post in the event of Congress coming to power, and are involved in a game of political oneupmanship.
Asked if would join hands with Shivakumar in case there is a possibility of him becoming the Chief Minister, he said, "They (Shivakumar and Congress) already feel that they have got a clear majority."
Earlier, speaking at the event that was attended by Voikkaliga community seers -- Nirmalanandanatha Mahaswamiji of the Adichunchanagiri Mahasamsthana Math and Nanjavadutha Swamiji of Spatikapuri Mutt -- Shivakumar spoke about his aspirations and sought the community's support.
"Lots of opportunities will come in the days to come. I will leave it to your discretion. I have told seers with folded hands to welcome 'Lakshmi' (Goddess of wealth) who is about to come to your doorstep in the form of light, it is left to them to welcome or not," he said.
"I will talk about politics next time...there is an ambition to give strong leadership to the community and create an impressive mark, need your blessings...D K Shivakumar is your son, you have stood by me during my difficult times, I'm sure that you will stand by me in the future too," he added.
Shivakumar, too, had earlier sought the community's backing for him to become the Chief Minister.
Referring to him being the only Vokkaliga to be the KPCC president after S M Krishna (who later went on to become Chief Minister), Shivakumar, while citing the example of how Dalits would want one of their own to become the Chief Minister, had recently, said: "Every community has self-respect. Let our community come together."
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
