Karnataka Congress Legislature Party to Elect New Leader Amid Leadership Transition

Bengaluru, May 2026 : The Karnataka Congress Legislature Party (CLP) is set to meet on Saturday to elect a new leader following the resignation of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, marking a crucial step in the party’s leadership transition in the state. The newly elected CLP leader is expected to be formally projected as the Congress candidate for the Chief Minister’s post.

The meeting will be held at 4 p.m. in the Conference Hall of Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru. Siddaramaiah, who currently serves as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party, will preside over the proceedings. The gathering is expected to bring together the party’s top leadership and elected representatives from across Karnataka.

According to party officials, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President D.K. Shivakumar, AICC General Secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala, Legislative Council floor leader N.S. Bose Raju, and the party’s executive presidents will attend the meeting. All Congress MLAs, MLCs, Lok Sabha MPs and Rajya Sabha members have also been directed to participate.

The announcement regarding the CLP meeting was made by Allamaprabhu Patil, MLA and Secretary of the Congress Legislature Party.

The meeting comes amid intense political activity within the Congress following Siddaramaiah’s decision to step down from the top post. On Friday, Siddaramaiah concluded a series of consultations in New Delhi with senior Congress leaders, including Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge.

After his meetings in the national capital, Siddaramaiah left for Bengaluru and was expected to arrive at HAL Airport on Friday evening. Before departing, he was seen sharing a meal with D.K. Shivakumar, Congress MLC Yathindra Siddaramaiah and former minister K.H. Muniyappa, a development that attracted considerable political attention.

Siddaramaiah also met AICC General Secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal and later held discussions with Shivakumar and former minister K.J. George, indicating that the party’s central leadership has been actively involved in the transition process.

Meanwhile, speculation over the next Chief Minister has continued to grow. Karnataka Minister H.K. Patil stated on Friday that D.K. Shivakumar appears poised to assume the state’s top office. According to Patil, Siddaramaiah’s remarks about discussions held in Delhi had already indicated that Shivakumar was likely to be the party’s choice for Chief Minister.

With the CLP meeting scheduled to formalise the leadership decision, all eyes are now on Bengaluru as the Congress prepares to usher in a new phase of governance in Karnataka under its next leader.