Siddaramaiah statue installed, removed in Kalaburagi ahead of Shivakumar visit

A nine foot statue of former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah was removed by the Kalaburagi City Corporation on Thursday morning after his supporters installed it without permission at High Court Circle, as chief minister D K Shivakumar was in the city for Kalyana Karnataka Utsav celebrations.

A group of seven to eight people from Sharan Sirasagi village brought the statue to the spot late on Wednesday and installed it in the public space. Shivakumar was scheduled to pass through the junction on his way to Afzalpur on Thursday, making the unauthorised structure a matter for the local administration before his movement through the area.

“Corporation officials reached the site after learning about the installation, covered the statue and brought in police personnel to prevent any confrontation. The structure was subsequently removed and taken to a secure location,” said an official in the know of the development.

“The statue had been put up despite previous requests by Siddaramaiah supporters for permission to install one at the site,” said Gurunath Pujari, district president of the Kuruba Sangha. “Supporters from Sharan Sirasagi had approached the corporation several times over the past few years,” he added.

Pujari said the decision to install the statue without waiting for approval was improper, but said the community would organise protests over its removal.

The location has previously been associated with efforts to name the junction after Siddaramaiah. About three years ago, supporters had sought to designate it as Siddaramaiah Circle without following the required official process.

The incident has drawn attention because of the timing of the statue’s installation, coming as Shivakumar was staying in Kalaburagi for the Kalyana Karnataka celebrations. Shivakumar succeeded Siddaramaiah as chief minister, and the two have remained central figures in the Congress’s internal power structure.

Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka said the overnight installation and removal of Siddaramaiah’s statue reflected continuing tensions within the Congress over the chief minister’s post.

“The CM may have changed, the statue may have been moved, but the Congress succession war hasn’t ended yet. The chair is still in contention. The camps are still at war. And the Congress High Command is still pretending everything is ‘under control’. The Game of Thrones in Karnataka Congress is not over. Not even close. And Kannadigas are paying a heavy price for it every single day,” Ashoka said in a post on X.

The episode also comes against the backdrop of differences within the state Congress following the change in chief minister. B K Hariprasad was appointed Karnataka Congress president after Shivakumar took over as CM. His appointment was seen within the party as an effort to prevent power from becoming concentrated around Shivakumar.

Hariprasad and Shivakumar have since differed publicly on questions of power and party leadership. During discussions over the expansion of the state Cabinet, Hariprasad said, “Whoever wants power and posts can go with Shivakumar. Those who want to strengthen the Congress and the hand of Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, come with me.”

Hariprasad was also reportedly unhappy after he was not invited to an event marking 100 days of the Shivakumar government on September 10. Shivakumar later said the government had invited everyone, including Opposition MLAs, and that seating at the Vidhana Soudha Banquet Hall had been determined by protocol.

Shivakumar also described Hariprasad as “supreme in Karnataka Congress” and “above even the CM”.

The statue controversy has therefore unfolded alongside an unsettled period inside the state Congress, though there is no indication in the available accounts that the people who installed the statue acted on instructions from either Siddaramaiah or Shivakumar.