Bengaluru: Ata time when whispers of a leadership change within the Karnataka Congress are growing louder, a sudden move by the party high command to appoint Chief Minister Siddaramaiah as the chairman of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) OBC Advisory Council has triggered intense political speculation and a fresh round of criticism from the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The announcement, which caught many within the state Congress off guard, is being widely seen by political watchers as a clear signal that Siddaramaiah’s days in the Chief Minister’s seat are numbered — a reading that the BJP wasted no time in amplifying with scathing statements.

Leader of the Opposition R. Ashoka was blunt in saying that the AICC’s decision was nothing but a polite message to Siddaramaiah to prepare for retirement. “Honourable Siddaramaiah sir, your services are enough. Submit your resignation and retire. This is what Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are indirectly telling him through this new OBC committee post,” Ashoka said in a strongly worded attack.

Ashoka went on to mock the CM’s hold over the chair. “How much longer will this ‘rubber stamp’ government survive? If Siddaramaiah has even an ounce of self-respect, he would not continue for another moment in this post,” he said, adding that the high command’s move indicates that the leadership transition within Karnataka Congress had begun in full swing.

Adding fuel to the fire, Council Opposition Leader Chalavadi Narayanaswamy predicted that Siddaramaiah will step down by November, possibly after presenting one more state budget.

“The plan to remove Siddaramaiah from Karnataka has begun. Just like Mallikarjun Kharge was shifted to Delhi and given a ‘shed’ to park him, now they have prepared a ‘shed’ for Siddaramaiah too. One more step and he will be in that shed,” Narayanaswamy thundered. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, reacting from Hubballi, echoed the sentiment and questioned what Siddaramaiah would even achieve by moving to Delhi. “This is a clear message asking Siddaramaiah to leave the CM’s post and come to Delhi. Good for him. When he cannot handle things here, what will he do in Delhi? What is the need to suddenly appoint him to a national OBC council? Everyone knows that DK Shivakumar has already been telling his loyalists internally that he will be the next CM,” Joshi said, taking a dig at the deep factional rivalry between Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM Shivakumar.

While BJP leaders sharpened their attacks, Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy chose to be more diplomatic. Speaking in Bengaluru, he refused to speculate, saying only, “I will not comment on the Congress party’s internal decisions.”

Political observers say the Congress high command’s move could be aimed at sending multiple signals at once — projecting Siddaramaiah as a national OBC leader while gradually easing him out of the CM’s chair to make way for DK Shivakumar’s long-standing ambition.

However, Siddaramaiah’s loyalists within the Congress maintain that the appointment is purely a recognition of his decades-long work championing OBC issues and does not affect his position as Chief Minister in any way.