'Don’t have any option': DK Shivakumar after being named senior Congress observer for Assam polls

BENGALURU: Karnataka deputy chief minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday said he would comply with the Congress leadership’s decision appointing him as a senior observer for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections, asserting that party discipline leaves him with no choice. Shivakumar was named senior observer for Assam along with former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel and Jharkhand leader Bandhu Tirkey, as the Congress prepares for the polls due in March–April. The party is looking to mount a strong challenge against the BJP government led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma."I don’t have any option. Whatever the party tells us to do, we have to do it. That is what being a Congressman means. I have seen the AICC press release. They have asked me to look after Assam. I had been to Assam earlier as well, long ago, and now they want me there again. I will be going," Shivakumar, who is also the Karnataka Congress President, told reporters. The development has attracted attention in Karnataka’s political circles, coming amid ongoing speculation about leadership changes in the state government. Shivakumar is widely seen as a key contender in the Congress’s internal power dynamics, with discussions gaining momentum after the government completed half its term in November. Elections to Assam’s 126 Assembly seats are expected to be held in March–April.