‘Even If the Effort Fails…’: DK Shivakumar’s cryptic post after Rahul Gandhi meet sparks Karnataka buzz

A brief one-on-one meeting between Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar at Mysuru airport has reignited speculation about a leadership change, even as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah denied any political discussion.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar set off fresh political speculation on Wednesday with a cryptic social media post following his brief meeting with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Writing on X, Shivakumar said, “Even if the effort fails, the prayer does not fail.” The message immediately drew attention amid ongoing talk of a possible change of guard in the state Congress leadership.

ಪ್ರಯತ್ನ ವಿಫಲವಾದರೂ ಪ್ರಾರ್ಥನೆ ವಿಫಲ ಆಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. pic.twitter.com/h6lcMm5WGY

— DK Shivakumar (@DKShivakumar) January 14, 2026

The post came a day after Rahul Gandhi had a short, exclusive interaction with Shivakumar at Mysuru’s Mandakalli airport. Rahul, who was travelling to Gudalur in Tamil Nadu, arrived in Mysuru around 2 pm on Tuesday on a special flight. He was received by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, who had flown together to the city earlier in the day.

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Within minutes of his arrival, Rahul left by helicopter for Gudalur, while Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar exited the airport separately. Later in the day, Rahul returned to Mysuru earlier than scheduled before departing for Delhi. Shivakumar reached the airport ahead of time and had a three-minute one-on-one conversation with Rahul Gandhi on the tarmac. Siddaramaiah joined them shortly after, and Rahul interacted briefly with both leaders before leaving on a special flight around 5.45 pm.

The private exchange between Rahul and Shivakumar, coming amid sustained speculation about leadership changes, created fresh political buzz. Shivakumar later shared photographs of the meeting with reporters, though neither he nor Siddaramaiah addressed the media at the airport.

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Earlier, Shivakumar was present when Mysuru city police accorded a guard of honour to Siddaramaiah, but he stayed away when the Chief Minister spoke to reporters. Shivakumar later left for a star hotel in the city, where he waited for Rahul’s return, while Siddaramaiah went back to his residence in Ramakrishna Nagar.

Responding to questions later, Siddaramaiah dismissed the speculation. He said the talk of a change in Chief Minister was being driven by the media and some MLAs who spoke without proper knowledge. “There is no confusion or issue between Shivakumar and me. Only the party high command can take such a decision, and we both will abide by it,” he said.