No "political ties" between Congress, JD(S) for RS or 2023 Assembly poll: Siddaramaiah
Karwar, May 26: Senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Thursday ruled out any "political relationship" between his party and the JD(S) either during the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls or the 2023 Assembly elections in Karnataka.
His statement gains significance, as none of the three parties has an adequate number of votes to win the fourth Rajya Sabha seat from the State Assembly.
The Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly also made it clear that he would not go to national politics, and would remain active in the State.
"There will not be any relationship (alliance or understanding) with JD(S)...we (Congress) will not have any political relationship with JD(S)," Siddaramaiah said in response to a question.
The June 10 election to four Rajya Sabha seats is necessitated as the term of office of members -- Nirmala Sitharaman (Union Finance Minister) and K C Ramamurthy of BJP, and Jairam Ramesh and late Oscar Fernandes of Congress -- is due to expire on June 30. The last date of filing nominations is May 31.
A candidate needs 45 votes to win in this RS election, and based on the current party position in the Legislative Assembly, the BJP can win two seats and Congress one, official sources said, adding that the JD(S) can win one, provided it gets the support of either one of the national parties.
Similarly, in case the BJP or Congress wants to win the extra (fourth) seat, they will need JD(S)' support, they said.
According to party sources, Congress may once again field Jairam Ramesh from the State for the seat it can win on its own strength.
In reply to a question, the former Chief Minister said he would remain limited to Karnataka and would not go for national politics.
"I will remain in Karnataka politics and continue to voice the concerns of the State and its people," he added.
Siddaramaiah had earlier said that the 2023 Assembly election would be his last, but would continue to remain in politics.
It is no secret that Siddaramaiah, who was Chief Minister between 2013-2018, is nursing his ambition for a second term in office, if the party wins the next Assembly polls.
With State Congress president D K Shivakumar, too, having similar aspirations, it has triggered a game of one-upmanship between the two leaders.
Responding to a question on the demand from some section within the party for a "Dalit CM" on coming to power, the Congress Legislative Party leader said the Chief Ministerial candidate cannot be forced, and on party coming to power with a majority, newly elected MLAs would share their opinion, following which the high command would decide.
"A Chief Minister candidate cannot be forced. Dalits should also become CM, there is no second talk about it, others should also become. In a democratic system everyone is capable of becoming a CM, including Dalits, Muslims, Christians," he said.
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BJP people 'gaddar', 'dramebaaz'; need to be removed from power: Kharge
New Delhi (PTI): Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday launched a scathing attack on the BJP, saying those indulging in "vote chori" are "gaddars" and need to be removed from power to save the voting right and the Constitution.
Addressing the party's 'Vote Chor Gaddi Chhod' rally at the Ramlila Maidan here, Kharge said it is the duty of all Indians to unitedly strengthen Congress ideology as only this party can save the country.
He alleged that the RSS ideology will "finish the nation".
ALSO READ: Rally against "vote chori" to protect every citizen's right, says D K Shivakumar
"The BJP people are 'gaddars' (traitors) and 'dramebaaz' (indulge in theatrics). They need to be removed from power," Kharge said.
The Congress president also said that he did not go for his son's operation in Bengaluru and stayed to attend the rally as he thought it was important "to save 140 crore people".
#WATCH | Delhi | Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge says, "The leaders of the BJP only do drama...Some BJP leaders were questioning whether, after the Parliament session, Rahul Gandhi is going abroad. During the Parliament session, PM Modi never attends the session but goes… pic.twitter.com/DMa5nAyc3Z
— ANI (@ANI) December 14, 2025
