Congress rules out any coalition for Karnataka polls

Bengaluru, Aug 18: Congress leader D K Shivakumar on Thursday ruled out any political alliance ahead of Karnataka polls 2023. He asserted that Congress is a "united house" and it will fight the assembly polls next year on its own under a "collective leadership".

Following a hung Assembly last time, the Congress had joined hands with the Janata Dal (Secular) to come to power in the state with HD Kumaraswamy as the chief minister. BJP's Yediyurappa had managed to engineer a rebellion in the coalition, following the saffron camp came to power in the state.

In an interview with PTI, Shivakumar said he is the least bothered about who becomes chief minister and his mandate is to deliver Karnataka to the Congress in the polls for the betterment of the state.

There have been reports recently of differences between Shivakumar and former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah who are considered front-runners for the chief minister's post if the Congress comes to power after Assembly elections, due in April-May next year.

Though both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar have on record maintained that the CM will be decided by the party's newly-elected MLAs and the high command after gaining majority in the polls, their loyalists and supporters have been projecting their respective leader, leading to unease in the party.

Shivakumar also exuded confidence that the party will form the next government and bag over 135 seats in the 224-member Assembly.