Siddaramaiah to meet Cong high command in Delhi to decide on CLP leader

With the selection of next Congress Legislature Party leader and state Congress president on the cards, former chief minister Siddaramaiah will meet the party high command in Delhi on Tuesday, a senior leader said on Sunday. "Yes... He is leaving for Delhi on Monday evening. There is a meeting scheduled with the party high command on Tuesday," said a Congress leader close to Siddaramaiah.

Names that are doing rounds for the post of CLP leader include H K Patil and former speaker K R Ramesh Kumar whereas D K Shivakumar and K H Muniyappa are the top contenders for the state party chief's post. Siddaramaiah had stepped down as the CLP leader while Dinesh Gundu Rao had resigned as state Congress president on December 9 after the party's poor performance in the assembly by-polls at 15 places.

While the ruling BJP won 12 seats, Congress could secure only two seats namely Hunasuru and Shivajinagar. An independent candidate won from Hoskote. The by-polls were necessitated due to the disqualification of 17 MLAs which brought down the coalition government of Congress and the JD(S).

The by-polls were held at 15 places whereas the decision regarding the two other assembly segments was put on hold pending court order. The BJP's thumping victory in the by-polls helped the saffron party gain majority in the Karnataka assembly with 117 seats minus the speaker.

The Congress and the JD(S) were expecting a substantial victory in the by-polls but the BJP's stellar performance left the leaders of the two parties in a state of shock. The bypolls were being seen as an acid test for Siddaramaiah and Rao.