Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will resign at 3 pm, Minister HK Patil told news agency ANI on 28 May adding that Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar would take over as the next Chief Minister."Chief Minister will resign at 3 o'clock. CM Siddaramaiah said that we will make DK Shivakumar the new CM, he will become the CM," HK Patil told reporters after the meeting at Siddaramaiah's official residence 'Kaveri'.
Patil, other minister and Shivakumar attended a key breakfast meeting hosted by Siddaramaiah at his Kaveri residence in Bengaluru on Thursday morining.
CM Siddaramiah may travel to Delhi to get a final nod on the picks for Deputy Chief Ministers. The crucial meeting came amid intense speculation over a leadership transition in the Karnataka Congress government, which recently completed three years in office.
During the breakfast meeting, DK Shivakumar was seen touching the feet of Siddaramaiah in a gesture viewed as symbolic of the expected transition. The two leaders also shared a warm embrace in front of party leaders and ministers gathered at the residene.
Several senior Karnataka ministers, including Priyank Kharge, KJ George, MB Patil, Ramalinga Reddy and HK Patil, attended the meeting amid tight security arrangements outside the venue.
Celebrations by supporters ouside DKS house
DK Suresh, former MP and brother of DK Shivakumar, arrived at Shivakumar's residence in Bengaluru amid growing political activity and celebrations by supporters outside the house.
Supporters of Shivakumar celebrated outside his Bengaluru residence by distributing sweets in anticipation of him becoming the next Chief Minister. In Kalaburagi, members of the Indian Youth Congress performed a special puja at the Shri Sharana Basaveshwara Temple, demanding that Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge be appointed Deputy Chief Minister if Shivakumar takes over the top post.
The Congress leadership has repeatedly described reports of leadership change as speculation. However, political activity intensified after Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar recently met senior Congress leaders, including party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, in New Delhi.
Why is Siddaramaiah resigning?
At the core of the leadership tangle in Karnataka is Shivakumar's demand that he be elevated to the chief minister's post in accordance with a "promise" his supporters claim was made to him during the 2023 state assembly elections.
The leadership tussle within the ruling party had intensified amid speculation about a possible change of chief minister after the Congress government completed the halfway mark of its five-year term on 20 November 2025.
Siddaramaiah hosted a breakfast meeting for his cabinet colleagues on Thursday morning. Shivakumar hugged the chief minister and even touched his feet. Siddaramaiah is learnt to have told the leaders that he would step down as chief minister today.