‘No November Revolution’: Siddaramaiah Dismisses CM Change Buzz, Calls It ‘Media Creation’ | Politics News

Last Updated:November 20, 2025, 19:07 IST

The leadership change buzz has plagued the ruling Congress in Karnataka for months with reports of a “November revolution” as Siddaramaiah completes 2.5 years in power this month

There has been much speculation about a possible leadership change in Karnataka, suggesting that CM Siddaramaiah (R) could step down to make way for his deputy DK Shivakumar (L). (Image: PTI/File)

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has once again had to step in to address rumours around a change of guard in the state as his government reaches the halfway point of its five-year term in November.

The leadership change buzz has plagued the ruling Congress for months with it culminating in reports of a “November revolution”, which Siddaramaiah thoroughly dismissed and termed as a “media creation” on Thursday.

“It is you (media) who coined the term. You cooked up this ‘revolution’. Hence, there is no ‘kranti’ (revolution) or ‘bhranti’ (confusion). We have been given a five-year tenure to rule. After five years, elections will take place and we will win once again,” Siddaramaiah told reporters.

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WHY HAVE THE ‘REVOLUTION’ REPORTS SURFACED?

There has been much speculation about a possible leadership change in Karnataka, suggesting that Siddaramaiah could step down to make way for his deputy DK Shivakumar as the next chief minister.

Some had labelled the potential change as the “November revolution”. But Siddaramaiah stressed that his position has been strong from the beginning and will continue to remain so in the future.

He reiterated that the people have entrusted the Congress with power for five years. “People have given us the mandate to rule for five years. We will make a sincere effort to fulfil the five guarantees (Gruha Lakshmi, Shakti, Gruha Jyothi, Anna Bhagya and Yuva Nidhi) we have promised,” he said, declining to comment on power-sharing discussions.

But when asked if he will remain in office for the full five-year term, he said: “What does it mean? These are unwanted discussions. I had told the party high command that two-and-a-half years had to pass, after which a cabinet reshuffle could be considered. It was only after that that these discussions about power sharing started.”

Asked if a date has been fixed for the cabinet reshuffle, the CM said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is in discussion with MP Rahul Gandhi. He made a strong indication that he will remain in power for the remaining tenure when he was asked how many budgets he will present, adding that he will continue to do so as long as the people wish.

Siddaramaiah further addressed a superstitious belief that sitting CMs visiting Chamarajanagar lose power midway. “I do not believe in superstition. For me, visiting Chamarajanagar, Mysuru, or Bengaluru is the same. I will visit all 31 districts of the state,” he said.

In fact, he said, his visit to Chamarajanagar was meant to challenge this superstition and send a message to those who said sitting CMs should avoid the district.

“My position has only strengthened. It has been strong from the beginning and will continue to remain strong in the future,” he added.

There was strong competition between him and Shivakumar for the CM’s post after the 2023 assembly elections, but the Congress convinced Shivakumar to become the deputy. There were reports of a compromise based on a “rotational chief minister formula”, where Shivakumar would become CM after two and a half years, but the party has not officially confirmed this.

WHAT IS GOING ON THE DK SHIVAKUMAR CAMP?

Karnataka minister N Chaluvarayaswamy has reached New Delhi on a 3 pm flight from Bengaluru. He said he is visiting for an appointment with the Union agriculture minister and has no political motive for this trip.

According to Congress sources, however, party leaders Iqbal Hussain, M Shivanna, H Srinivas and Ranganath may seek an appointment with the high command in Delhi – KC Venugopal and Randeep Surjewala – to discuss transfer of power to Shivakumar now that 2.5 years of the Siddarmaiah government is complete, the sources said.

The sources, however, said the Congress high command has informed everyone that it will not entertain any sort of lobbying for change of CM from either  camp. The question now is whether the high command will meet these leaders as they are expected to be in Delhi till November 23, they said.

Amid these developments, Shivakumar has suggested he might step down as the state Congress president, saying others should also get a chance. Speaking at a party event on former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s birth anniversary, he said he does not want to be KPCC chief forever.

He said he wanted to leave the post when he became deputy CM in 2023, but stayed on after the high command asked him to. After his recent visit to Delhi, he said: “I do not want to remain KPCC president forever. I took office in 2020 and have already completed five years and five months. When Congress won the 2023 assembly elections, I became deputy chief minister. I was ready to leave the KPCC president post then, but continued as instructed by Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge. Next March, it will be six years. Others should also be given a chance.”

With all the rumours going around, the BJP found an opportunity to severely criticise the state of the ruling Congress in Karnataka. It said the “factional fight” between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar has caused the state to suffer from “bad governance”.

“… The daily factional fight between the CM (Siddaramaiah) and the DCM (DK Shivakumar) has gone so far that just 15 to 20 days ago, I heard that officers from both camps, who are divided, were shaking hands in the state assembly. This is the situation of Karnataka under the Congress party… It is suffering because of this bad governance… ” BJP MP Tejasvi Surya told reporters in Mumbai.

(With agency inputs)

Rohini Swamy

Rohini Swamy, Associate Editor at News18, has been a journalist for nearly two decades in the television and digital space. She covers south India for News18’s digital platform. She has previously worked with t…Read More

Rohini Swamy, Associate Editor at News18, has been a journalist for nearly two decades in the television and digital space. She covers south India for News18’s digital platform. She has previously worked with t… Read More

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