Siddaramaiah stays ahead of his deputy in power game

If power is used strategically, then it becomes a superpower. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in a bid to retain power, has in one sweeping decision sanctioned huge funds to every legislator. It could cost the state nearly Rs 8000 crore.
On Thursday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah issued a special allotment head called Chief Minister’s Infrastructure Development Scheme and allocated Rs 50 crore each to Congress legislators.
This allocation is a masterstroke in real politics. He has ensured support of Congress legislators in his fight for power with his deputy DK Shivakumar and created a legacy in the state for the party as well as himself, or should we say for his son Yatindra.
There is a catch in the way of allotment of the funds, and in imposing conditions, the chief minister seems to have taken a tactically wrong step.
The legislators, with their proposal, have to approach Chief Minister’s Secretary Dr Venkateshaiah and Special Officer Shashidhar and submit their proposals. The project would be implemented only after the chief minister’s consent. By retaining the final green signal for the projects, Siddaramaiah has opened himself to many accusations, which can negate all the gain he wants to reap from the masterstroke.
An outwitted Shivakumar was forced to defend this decision and cooperate. Interestingly, the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, headed by Shivakumar issued a circular to all the Congress legislators to make use of the new scheme for them.
“We had made this decision in the budget. About ₹8000 crores of funds were allocated for this. We will give this fund to the ruling and opposition MLAs. The funds have been given for public works, rural development, and the discretion of the MLAs,” Shivakumar said. But he will wait to strike while choosing time and method. That is the hallmark of Shivakumar’s politics.
Last week, Karnataka power politics went to such an extent that AICC General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala had to rush to the state capital and meet the Congress legislators.