‘Congress won 135 seats in Karnataka under my presidency’: DK Shivakumar amid tussle over CM post

The Congress swept the Karnataka Assembly election on Saturday, securing 135 seats and relegating other parties firmly into the Opposition ranks. Two days later however, it remains unclear who will assume the Chief Minister's mantle. Both Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar and former CM Siddaramaiah had emerged as contenders for the top post in the run up to the polls and are now headed to Delhi for talks. 

“Under my leadership, we have 135 MLAs, all in one voice, said that the matter (to appoint CM) is to be left to the party's high command. My aim was to deliver Karnataka and I did it,” Shivakumar told the media in Bengaluru. 

Earlier reports had suggested that Siddaramaiah had put forth a power sharing agreement that would see him at the helm for two years Shivakumar took over for the remaining three years. The proposition was reportedly turned down by the latter. 

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He also traced the party's journey in the past five years, noting that he had not lost heart when “all MLAs left” and the coalition government with JD(S) broke down.

“When all MLAs left our party and we lost our government, I did not lose hope. I do not want to disclose what has happened in the last 5 years,” the Karnataka Congress chief added.

The party has appointed three central observers as remains engaged in the process of picking the next Karnataka CM. Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala had earlier said that the decision "would not take very long".

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(With inputs from agencies)