Siddaramaiah quits electoral politics, again. What’s next for the 80-yr-old ex Karnataka CM

**Bengaluru:** Declaring politics has become “corrupted”, former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah has announced he will not contest the state’s 2028 Assembly elections. Making clear his intentions of remaining politically active, the Congress Working Committee member went on to say that the influence of money and muscle has gained too much significance, making it harder for him to continue.

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“The reasons given by him (Siddaramaiah) are very important. He said that politics is corrupted, there is too much influence of money, especially black money… that is 100 per cent correct… he has become frustrated and announced to resign,” Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president B.K. Hariprasad said on Monday.

Touching 80, the two-time chief minister of Karnataka has made similar announcements in the past, notably ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections. Cabinet ministers like Eshwar Khandre and several of his loyalists like Santosh Lad said that they would like Siddaramaiah to contest the 2028 elections.

It does appear, however, that Siddaramaiah is dead serious this time. “Earlier also, my father mentioned this, even when he was chief minister he said that he will not contest the 2028 Assembly elections. He has made this decision and we should all respect that,” Siddaramaiah’s son, Karnataka Cabinet minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah, said on Monday, adding that his even if he does not contest elections, his father would remain politically active and continue to raise his voice for the exploited and oppressed classes. “If he makes a strong decision, then no one can change his mind,” Yathindra said, adding that he also expects his father to pay more attention to his health.

Since stepping down as chief minister in May this year, Siddaramaiah has kept a low profile but remained in the thick of all political matters, especially in the new D.K. Shivakumar-led Congress government that replaced him. He remains a central figure in the Congress party under the D.K. Shivakumar-led government. Analysts, however, say this likely marks the end of Siddaramaiah’s half a century in electoral politics but outlines a possible larger role for the leader.

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# Mass politics

Influenced by Dr Ram Manohar Lohia’s school of socialism, Siddaramaiah entered politics to advance social justice, advocating the rights of oppressed and backward classes in the southern districts of Karnataka. He first contested on a Bharatiya Lok Dal ticket in 1983, winning from the Chamundeshwari seat to enter the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. Since then, he has carved out a niche for himself despite the presence of stalwarts like H.D. Deve Gowda, Ramakrishna Hegde, Veerendra Patil, Devaraj Urs and several others.

For most of his political career, Siddaramaiah has remained focused on building the AHINDA support base (Kannada acronym for minorities, backward classes and Dalits). This grouping remains central to the party’s politics in Karnataka, particularly since 2006 when Siddaramaiah parted ways with his mentor, H.D. Deve Gowda, to join the Congress. Despite being a relatively new face at the time, he managed to edge out senior leaders like Mallikarjuna Kharge and G. Parameshwara, pivoting from the Congress’s earlier strategy of aligning with dominant castes and minorities.

Narendar Pani, a Bengaluru-based political analyst and faculty at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, said that Siddaramaiah appears to be the only political personality within the Congress who has positioned himself as anti-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), anti-Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, and pro-social justice–three topics mirrored by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. “This time it appears that he will focus on mass politics. It’s more a political strategy than retirement,” Pani told ThePrint, adding that Congress requires someone who can mobilise the AHINDA bloc on the ground.

Analysts also point out that while the 80-year-old’s trajectory shares similarities with the BJP’s B.S. Yediyurappa—in that their respective parties can neither fully manage nor do without them—a key difference is how Siddaramaiah stepped down as chief minister without resistance, thereby enhancing his standing with the Gandhis. Also, there are no alternative Kuruba mass leaders like Siddaramaiah in the Congress, again similar to how BJP has no substitute Lingayat leader other than Yediyurappa.

The Kurubas, traditionally shepherds, are a politically significant community with a large presence in several constituencies spread across the state. More importantly, there is a significant Kuruba population in most constituencies, making them a good swing vote that can decide closely fought contests.

>What’s next for the 80-yr-old ex Karnataka CM

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