SIDDA MEDICINE FOR SELF-HEALING

Is he going? Yes, going great guns. A favourable SC verdict caps a good run for a beleaguered CM

- By Ajay Sukumaran

OVER TWO YEARS as a Congress CM, the one thing Siddaramaiah hasn't been able to shake off is dogged speculation about a midterm change of guard. For that, he has his own partymen to thank. Case in point: the fresh spell of theorising spurred by a cryptic comment by cooperation minister K.N. Rajanna, a Sidda loyalist, about an 'upheaval' in September. It took multiple visits by AICC Karnataka in-charge Randeep Surjewala to tamp down on the buzz, even if tenuously. Amidst parleys with MLAs, Surjewala told reporters on July 1: "Some of you asked me...are you taking opinions on a leadership change. The answer is clearly no," he said, flanked by deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar, the one biding time for the top post.