Karnataka CM impasse: Siddaramaiah fans celebrate; DKS doesn’t budge, say sources

News Network
May 17, 2023

DKSidd.jpg

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi met Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar on Wednesday, May 17, as the party closed in on naming the next Karnataka Chief Minister after the election win over the weekend.

Siddaramaiah's supporters were seen bursting firecrackers and distributing sweets after his meeting with Rahul Gandhi, but the suspense over the Karnataka Chief Minister's post after the Congress's emphatic victory in the assembly elections endured for the fourth day. Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said a decision could take 48 hours more and another 24 for announcing the cabinet.

According to sources, the Congress is closing in on naming Siddaramaiah, 75, for the role because he has the support of most MLAs and the task now is to bring Mr Shivakumar, 61, on board.

Meanwhile, former Congress president Sonia Gandhi spoke to Shivakumar and urged him to take up the post of Deputy Chief Minister. However, sources said, he politely declined the offer following which she asked him to continue as Congress Karnataka President. Sources said she told Shivakumar that party values his contributions. 

In his meeting with Mr Gandhi, Mr Shivakumar indicated that he would not back down in the standoff with Siddaramaiah, sources said. He later met Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge.

Siddaramaiah has been in Delhi since Monday, where he met with senior Congress leaders amid speculation that he is the frontrunner in the race for the top post. Asked when there would be an announcement, he said, "Let's wait and see. I don't know".

Mr Shivakumar has earlier stressed that does not envisage a rebellion even if he is deprived of the job. "If the party wants, they can give me the responsibility... Ours is a united house. I don't want to divide anyone here. Whether they like me or not, I am a responsible man. I will not backstab, and I will not blackmail," he said.

The party's leadership has been briefed on the views of the newly elected MLAs by the team of observers sent to the state. Their decision is certain to affect the party's prospects in the next year's general election.

While Siddaramaiah is seen to be a leader with mass appeal and completed a full term in 2018, Mr Shivakumar is known for his strong organisational capabilities, and is considered resourceful and Congress' troubleshooter during tough times. Settling for either of the two contenders may lead to alienating the other, as well as their support base - within the party and out.

In DK Shivakumar's case, it could mean a large section of the politically crucial Vokkaligas. In the case of Mr Siddaramaiah, it could mean a chunk of MLAs backing him, and the AHINDA platform -- an old social combination of minorities, Other Backward Classes, and Dalits, which had voted en masse for the Congress.

The politically crucial Lingayat community, meanwhile, has staked claim to the Chief Minister's post. In a letter addressed to Mr Kharge, the Lingayat organisation All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha pointed out that 34 of the 46 Lingayat leaders fielded by the Congress have won.

Political commentators had seen the quagmire approaching months before the assembly election held last week, which saw the Congress win a clear majority, finishing with 135 seats in the 224-member assembly.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
April 8,2025

madhubangarappa.jpg

Bengaluru: The results of the PUC 2 examination one were announced today with an over all pass percentage of 69.16 as against the 81.15% in the 2024 exam 1.

Due to several examination reforms, including installation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled CCTV cameras in the examination hall to check malpractices and webcasting of the entire process, the results seem to have dipped by 11.99% compared to the previous year.

The results will be available online after 1:30pm. Candidates can visit http://karresults.nic.in to check their results.

Amoolya M Kamath from Expert PU college Dakshina Kannada, Deeksha R from Vagdevi PU College Shivamogga have topped the state in science stream by scoring 599 for 600.

In Commerce Deepashree S from Canara PU College Dakshina Kannada emerged as topper with 599 out of 600 and in Arts LR Sanjana Bai of Indu Independent PU college Kottur in Ballari bagged the first place by scoring 597.

Minister for School Education and Literacy Madhu Bangarappa released the results and said, "students those who have failed or those who wish to improve their marls can take exam 2 and 3. We will not be charging any fee for exam 2 and 3."

"I will not say students are failed. As the exam process will complete only after 3rd exam, we have hopes to improve the results by 3-4%," he mentioned.

"We have opportunity to improve the results. We have conducted the exams with complete vigil by preventing all the malpractices by monitoring through webcasting," said the minister.

For exams 1 total of 6,37,805 were appeared of which 468439 managed to clear the exams.

This time department has not given any grace marks, except the one which awards to push those who were in border line. "There were over 8297 students in the borderline and pushed with the grace as per scheme of evaluation," the minister added.

Udupi Leads Again

The coastal district of Udupi has emerged as the top performer once again, recording a remarkable 93.90% pass rate, as per a report on One India. Dakshina Kannada followed closely with 93.57%, while Bangalore South stood third at 85.36%. At the bottom of the list, Yadgir reported the lowest pass percentage with 48.45%.

Here are the top 10 performing districts:

Udupi – 93.90%
Dakshina Kannada – 93.57%
Bangalore South – 85.36%
Kodagu – 83.84%
Bangalore North – 83.31%
Uttara Kannada – 82.93%
Shimoga – 79.91%
Bangalore Rural – 79.70%
Chikmagalur – 79.56%
Haveri – 76.56%

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
April 10,2025

Mangaluru: A seemingly harmless YouTube advertisement has cost a Mangaluru man his life savings, after he fell victim to an elaborate investment scam and lost a staggering ₹55 lakh.

According to the police complaint, the victim was lured in by a man named Shardul Jani, who claimed that a trading app called Abans Pro would deliver high returns. On February 11, the man made an initial investment of ₹15,000. A trading account was created for him, which soon began displaying encouraging profits.

Buoyed by these promising numbers and under constant persuasion from the accused, the man was convinced to invest more. Reassured that the money could be withdrawn at any time, he not only continued investing himself but also involved his relatives, who collectively transferred ₹39 lakh into his account for further investments.

Between February 11 and March 27, the victim transferred a total of ₹55 lakh to multiple bank accounts provided by the accused. But when he finally attempted to withdraw the funds, nothing came back. The profits were a mirage—his money had vanished.

Realising he had been conned, the man approached the Bajpe police, who have registered a case and begun an investigation into the fraudulent scheme.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
April 7,2025

Mangaluru, Apr 7: A price storm is brewing in Mangaluru’s hotel and restaurant industry. Faced with skyrocketing raw material costs and mounting overheads, hoteliers are preparing to hike food prices by up to 10% within a month — a move that could hit the pockets of thousands of diners across Dakshina Kannada.

From milk and oil to LPG and staples like rice and toor dal, prices have surged, pushing both vegetarian and non-vegetarian establishments to the brink. Over 65% of hotels operate in rented spaces, and labour shortages are adding fuel to the fire.

Swarna Sunder of Dinki Dine says running a hotel without burdening customers is becoming near-impossible. “Costs are rising daily. We’re trying to strike a balance, but a hike is inevitable,” he said, calling Mangaluru a highly price-sensitive market.

Industry leaders, including the Dakshina Kannada Hotel Owners Association, are expected to meet soon to formalize the revision.

Meanwhile, hoteliers blame "unhealthy competition" for further disrupting the sector. “Some serve unlimited fish meals under ₹60 — it’s unsustainable and unfair,” said a hotelier, adding that such practices are forcing smaller eateries to shut shop.

Chandrahas Shetty, president of the district association, confirmed that rising input costs have left them with little choice but to revise menus.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.