Siddaramaiah resigned as Karnataka chief minister on Thursday, setting in motion a long-anticipated transition in the state’s Congress government and sharpening the spotlight on deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar.
The resignation was tendered while Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot was away from Bengaluru, with the governor’s special secretary confirming receipt of the letter and saying only the Governor can accept it after he returns.
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— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) May 28, 2026
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A resignation long rehearsed in Delhi’s corridors?
Speaking after submitting his resignation, Siddaramaiah said the decision followed instructions from the Congress leadership.
“I have said and maintained that if the high command asks me to resign I shall resign,” he said, adding that he had been asked to step down and would do so within 48 hours. He also said he had resigned “on my own accord” and that the party high command would choose the next chief minister.
The next Karnataka CM will be decided by the High Command and the Congress Legislative Party, says outgoing Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah, amid leadership transition talks (gesturing towards #DKShivakumar)#Karnataka CM #Siddaramaiah has resigned after completing three years of https://t.co/HFDw80R4bS pic.twitter.com/OMNVotKO8t
— Surya Reddy (@jsuryareddy) May 28, 2026
A careful bow before the curtain falls
The outgoing chief minister thanked Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge for giving him the opportunity to serve, and said he had received support from the party since joining the Congress in 2006.
He also reiterated that constitutional process should guide the transfer of power, saying the governor had a constitutional role in accepting the resignation. Hindustan Times reported that Siddaramaiah had earlier refused a Rajya Sabha offer and wanted to continue in state politics, while he later left for New Delhi to meet Rahul Gandhi after resigning.
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Breakfast diplomacy and embraces thereafter
The political churn had been building through the day. Siddaramaiah held a breakfast meeting with cabinet colleagues earlier on Thursday, with Shivakumar also present, and the two later appeared together in public after the resignation.
Photos circulated by the Karnataka Congress showed the two leaders embracing, while reports noted that speculation over a possible leadership change had persisted since the Congress came to power in Karnataka in 2023.
Siddaramaiah, who had served as chief minister from 2013 to 2018 and again from 2023, left the final decision on the next leader to the party’s top brass.
