DK Shivakumar Sworn In as Karnataka’s 24th Chief Minister, Constitution in Hand
Congress fulfils power-sharing deal as veteran Vokkaliga strongman takes charge in Bengaluru, with G Parameshwara named Deputy CM and 12 MLAs inducted into cabinet
By NewsArc Bureau | Bengaluru | June 3, 2026
DK Shivakumar was sworn in as Karnataka’s 24th Chief Minister at Bengaluru’s Lok Bhavan on Wednesday, bringing to a close a months-delayed power-sharing arrangement within the state’s Congress government that had simmered since late 2025. Holding a copy of the Constitution as he took the oath of office, Shivakumar replaces Siddaramaiah, who resigned on May 28 after governing the state from May 20, 2023.
G Parameshwara was simultaneously sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister. Twelve MLAs also took the oath as ministers in the new cabinet, among them Yatindra Siddaramaiah — MLC son of the outgoing Chief Minister — in what observers noted was part of a negotiated settlement between the two Congress factions.
The swearing-in was attended by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, party national president Mallikarjun Kharge, and Chief Ministers of Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand, reflecting the national significance Congress has attached to retaining Karnataka, its most important southern state.
The Power-Sharing Deal — Long Delayed
The transition has its roots in a formula agreed upon after the 2023 Karnataka assembly elections, in which both Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar emerged as credible claimants to the chief ministership. The arrangement settled upon was that each would serve for two and a half years. Siddaramaiah’s half-term was completed in November 2025, but he remained in office, reportedly unwilling to relinquish the post.
Sources within Karnataka Congress said the transition was originally supposed to have happened in December 2025, but was deferred because senior Congress leadership — including Rahul Gandhi — was preoccupied with election preparations in Kerala at the time. The change was finally set in motion on May 28, when Siddaramaiah submitted his resignation to the Governor’s secretary at Lok Bhavan — Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot being out of Bengaluru for personal reasons at the time.
In a moment of carefully choreographed political symbolism, Shivakumar touched Siddaramaiah’s feet at a cabinet meeting on the day of the resignation, after which the two embraced — a public display of unity that Congress hopes will contain any factional tensions.
On May 29, both leaders flew to Delhi, where Siddaramaiah met Rahul Gandhi for approximately half an hour. Reports indicated that during this meeting, Siddaramaiah secured a commitment that his son Yatindra would receive a significant portfolio in the new cabinet. On May 30, the Congress Legislative Party met in Bengaluru and unanimously elected Shivakumar as its leader, with Siddaramaiah himself proposing his successor’s name.
The day before the swearing-in, Siddaramaiah was appointed a member of the Congress Working Committee, widely seen as a face-saving elevation to soften the blow of losing the Chief Ministership.
Cabinet Expansion to Follow
Wednesday’s swearing-in was only a partial formation of the new government. With Legislative Council and Rajya Sabha elections scheduled through June 18, the full cabinet expansion has been deferred until after that date. Sources suggested that up to four Deputy Chief Ministers could eventually be named, with sons of both Siddaramaiah and Kharge likely to feature in the expanded council of ministers. Around ten ministers from the outgoing cabinet are expected to be dropped.
Who Is DK Shivakumar?
Born in 1962 in Kanakapura, near Bengaluru, Shivakumar belongs to the influential Vokkaliga community and represents the Kanakapura assembly constituency. Within Congress, he has long been regarded as an indispensable crisis manager — the man deployed to prevent MLAs from defecting during political emergencies, most famously during the 2017 Gujarat Rajya Sabha elections when he sheltered Congress legislators at a Bengaluru resort.
He is among the wealthiest politicians in the country, with declared assets exceeding ₹1,413 crore spanning real estate, mining and hospitality businesses. His election affidavit, however, lists only a single Toyota Qualis car as a personal vehicle — an anomaly that has attracted persistent scrutiny. He also carries declared liabilities of ₹263 crore.
His political rise has not been without serious legal complications. He faces more than 19 criminal cases. The Enforcement Directorate is investigating two separate money laundering matters against him. In 2017, income tax raids on his premises recovered ₹8.5 crore in cash. The same case led to his arrest in 2019, following which he spent 50 days in Tihar Jail. The CBI is separately probing a disproportionate assets case against him.
Shivakumar has denied wrongdoing in all cases and his supporters regard the prosecutions as politically motivated. His legal troubles did not prevent Congress from choosing him, reflecting both his organisational indispensability and his community’s political weight ahead of assembly elections due in 2028.
Congress Masterstroke or Risk?
Political analysts are divided on whether the mid-term change strengthens or weakens Congress in Karnataka. On one hand, the transition demonstrates the party’s ability to honour internal commitments and manage competing power centres without a visible breakdown — a contrast to the BJP’s own difficulties in the state. On the other, installing a Chief Minister who carries active ED and CBI investigations gives the opposition considerable ammunition with 23 months remaining before the next election.
Before his swearing-in, Shivakumar called on former BJP Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa at his residence — a gesture read as an attempt to build cross-party goodwill with the dominant Lingayat community, whose support will be critical in 2028.
Karnataka now enters a new chapter. Whether Shivakumar can translate his reputation as a behind-the-scenes fixer into the visible governance record that a Chief Minister requires will be the defining question of his tenure.
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