Believing in his stars, will DKS play Shinde in K'taka?

Is said to have told Venugopal he will bring party to power in 2028

- DEVARAJ B HIREHALLI @Bengaluru

WITH Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar becoming assertive to stake claim for the chief minister's post after incumbent Siddaramaiah completes two-and-a-half years of his tenure in October, the opposition BJP has turned his sympathiser.

Shivakumar, who believes in astrology, feels that his stars are on the ascendant and has become aggressive to acquire the post, a source said. The billion-dollar question is whether he will go by his stars or the party high command's diktat.

But the saffron party and its leaders, including Leader of Opposition in Assembly R Ashoka, are fuelling Shivakumar's ambition and wish to see him play an Eknath Shinde in Karnataka by splitting Congress and becoming chief minister with its support. Shinde split Shiv Sena in Maharashtra to become chief minister and now in the second term of BJP-Sena coalition government, he is the deputy chief minister.