BENGALURU, 30 JULY

Karnataka BJP President BY Vijayendra on Wednesday claimed that there is a "vertical split" within the ruling Congress over the Chief Minister-change issue and predicted "Diwali dhamaka" as all is not seemingly well in the grand old party.

He alleged that the CM is struggling to retain the confidence of the legislators, who have lost faith in him.

The BJP leader's remarks come amid speculations about a State leadership change later this year, fuelled by a power-sharing agreement between incumbent CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar.

"Most of the legislators who are unhappy with CM Siddaramaiah due to lack of development activities are not being taken into confidence. The MLAs are upset and are publicly attacking the CM on various issues," Vijayendra said.

"Shivakumar is seen as CM in waiting. Some MLAs want Shivakumar as the CM, while some want Mallikarjun Kharge, even as other want Siddaramaiah to continue. This has created a vertical split within the ruling party in Karnataka. This Diwali, there will be a big ‘dhamaka’ within the Congress party," he said.