Senior Congress leaders are eyeing the Leader of Opposition's post in the Legislative Assembly after the 14-month-long coalition government fell in Karnataka on July 23.
Former chief minister and Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah, Dr G Parameshwara, DK Shivakumar and Krishna Byre Gowda are running for the post.
Although the party workers and legislators prefer Siddaramiah for the role, the competition is expected to be intense.
A fraction in the party believes that the CLP leader is no longer the best choice due to the fall of the coalition. The party high command was also not happy with the utter failure of the party in the recently held polls, which gave a major momentum to the BJP.
It is also alleged that Siddaramaiah never really wanted to save the coalition but had to be a part of it just to keep the BJP at bay. Many of the Congress leaders were also unhappy with their alliance with the JD(S).
The incumbent Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara has also claimed the post based on seniority in the party and the fact that Congress came to power in Karnataka when he was the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president, reported Bangalore Mirror.
The Congress troubleshooter, DK Shivakumar, has also taken big risks to stabilise the coalition. He had also helped the Congress by ensuring the victory of its senior leader Ahmed Patel, who is a close aide of the Gandhi family.
The general secretary of KPCC, Krishna Byre Gowda, has also proved his worth in the Assembly by lashing out at the BJP. He is also a close aide of Rahul Gandhi.
The Karnataka government will see a new rule with the BJP leading in the majority with 107 seats including one Karnataka Pragnyavantha Janatha Party (KPJP) and one independent. The opposition has a total of 101 seats with the Congress having 67 seats and JD(S) 34.
