D. K. Shivakumar Explained

D. K. Shivakumar
Office:9th Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka
Governor:Thawar Chand Gehlot
1Blankname:Chief Minister
1Namedata:Siddaramaiah
Term Start:20 May 2023
Office1:Member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly
Constituency1:Kanakapura
Term Start1:15 May 2008
Predecessor1:P. G. R. Sindhia
Constituency2:Sathanur
Term Start2:30 November 1989
Term End2:10 May 2008
Predecessor2:K. L. Shivalinge Gowda
Successor2:Office Abolished
Office3:President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee
1Blankname3:National President
1Namedata3:Mallikarjun Kharge
Term Start3:2 July 2020
Predecessor3:Dinesh Gundu Rao
Office4:Cabinet Minister, Government of Karnataka
1Blankname4:Chief Minister
1Namedata4:H. D. Kumaraswamy
Siddaramaiah
2Blankname4:Ministry and Departments
2Namedata4:
  • Water Resources
  • Medical Education
  • Energy
Term Start4:11 July 2014
Term End4:23 July 2019
Office5:Working President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee
Term Start5:2008
Term End5:2010
Predecessor5:Office established
Successor5:Eshwara Khandre assumed office on 2018
Birth Date:15 May 1962
Birth Place:Kanakapura, Mysore State, India
Party:Indian National Congress
Spouse:Usha Shivakumar
Children:3
Relatives:D. K. Suresh (brother)
Occupation:Politician
Nationality:Indian

Doddalahalli Kempegowda Shivakumar (born 15 May 1962), also known by his initials as D. K. Shivakumar, is an Indian politician and businessman who is the 9th and Current Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka and also Water resources and Bengaluru Development and Town Planning & Bengaluru Urban District Incharge Minister since 20 May 2023 as a member of the Indian National Congress. He is also the President of the Karnataka PCC since 2020 and was the Working President from 2008 to 2010. He was the cabinet minister in the Government of Karnataka from 2014 to 2019. He represented the Kanakapura constituency in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly since 2008 and from Sathanur Assembly constituency from 1989 to 2004.

Personal life

Shivakumar was born to Kempegowda and Gouramma[1] in Kanakapura[2] near Bangalore, Karnataka. He belongs to the Vokkaliga community.[3]

He has a younger brother D. K. Suresh who's also a politician.[4] Shivakumar married Usha in 1993 and has two daughters, Aishwarya and Aabharana, and a son Aakash with her. His oldest daughter is married to Amartya, son of Café Coffee Day founder V. G. Siddhartha.[5]

He is one of the richest politicians in India.[6]

Political career

Shivakumar started his political career in the early 1980s as a student leader and gradually rose through the ranks of the Congress party. He won his first election in 1989 when he was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly from the Sathanur constituency in the Mysuru district. He was just 27 years old at the time and contested the election on a Congress ticket.[7] Shivakumar went on to win re-election from the same constituency in the subsequent assembly elections in 1994, 1999 and 2004. He won from Kanakapura constituency in 2008, 2013, 2018 & 2023.

Vilasrao Deshmukh, during his tenure as Chief Minister of Maharashtra, worked closely with Shivakumar when he faced the motion of no confidence in 2002. Shivakumar hosted the Maharastra legislators in his resort located on the outskirts of Bangalore for a week until the date of the vote. This saved Deshmukh's government.[8]

Just before his election to the Rajya Sabha in 2017 from Gujarat, he assisted his party leadership to move 42 Gujarat Congress MLAs into his resort in Bengaluru to avoid them moving to another political party. Subsequently, this helped Ahmed Patel to win the election.[9] [10]

He is credited with playing a critical role in the formation of the coalition government of Indian National Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) in Karnataka following the 2018 election.[11]

He is also a close confidante of party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi.[12] Shivakumar is among the richest politicians in India. While filing his nomination for election in 2018, he declared total assets of 840 crore.[13]

On 2 July 2020, Shivakumar officially took charge as Karnataka PCC president succeeding Dinesh Gundu Rao.[14]

On 20 May 2023, Shivakumar became the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka following the victory of the Congress party in the 2023 election.

Positions held

YearPositionRef
1989–1994Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Minister of Prisons and Homeguards
[15]
1994–1999Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Minister of Urban Development
1999–2004Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly[16]
2004–2008Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
2008–2013Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • KPCC Working President
[17]
2013–2018Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Minister of Energy
[18]
2018–2023Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly [19]
2023–Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly

Electoral statistics

YearElectionConstituency NamePartyResultVotes gainedVote share%MarginRef
29,809 38.78% 15,803
44,595 49.77% 13,650
48,270 46.08% 568
56,050 54.64% 14,387
2002
(bypoll)
529,133 37.61% 52,576 [20]
51,60347.91% 13,928
68,096 48.34% 7,179
100,007 56.77% 31,424
127,552 68.52% 79,909 [21]
143,023 75.00% 122,392

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Shivakumar's father passes away. 2014-01-01. The Hindu. 2020-03-07. en-IN. 0971-751X. 3 January 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140103215825/http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/shivakumars-father-passes-away/article5523618.ece. live.
  2. Web site: DK Shivakumar: The man called tiger of Sathanur. August 4, 2017. Rohini. Swamy. India Today. en. 2020-03-07. 20 September 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190920042716/https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/dk-shivakumar-sathanur-1027920-2017-08-04. live.
  3. Web site: 2017-08-02 . D K Shivakumar: Congress's trusted Vokkaliga strategist-strongman . 2019-09-01 . Hindustan Times . en . 1 September 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190901213855/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/d-k-shivakumar-congress-s-trusted-vokkaliga-strategist-strongman/story-ULEFOaMOQQdtT7b8YdcIaP.html . live .
  4. Web site: DK Shivakumar likely to be Karnataka Congress chief. 2020-02-16. Hindustan Times. en. 2020-03-07. 20 February 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200220195701/https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/shivakumar-likely-to-be-k-taka-cong-chief/story-U73ycWE4Se33w5wTFUrYJI.html. live.
  5. Web site: Archived copy . 22 March 2021 . 2 March 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210302040420/https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2021/feb/08/vvips-from-delhi-to-land-in-bengaluru-for-wedding-of-dk-shivakumars-daughter-2261012.html . live .
  6. Web site: D.K.Shivakumar Assets . 26 October 2023.
  7. News: Prabhu . Nagesh . 2023-04-22 . D.K. Shivakumar Congress’s man for all seasons . en-IN . The Hindu . 2023-05-04 . 0971-751X . 4 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230504183100/https://www.thehindu.com/elections/karnataka-assembly/dk-shivakumar-congresss-man-for-all-seasons/article66766314.ece . live .
  8. Web site: Swamy . Rohini . 2020-03-11 . Why DK Shivakumar is the Congress’ choice to lead the party out of a hole in Karnataka . 2023-05-04 . ThePrint . en-US . 4 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230504183059/https://theprint.in/politics/why-dk-shivakumar-is-the-congress-choice-to-lead-the-party-out-of-a-hole-in-karnataka/352360/ . live .
  9. News: DK Shivakumar: The man who saved Congress. Bangalore Mirror. 2018-07-16. 16 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180716194915/https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/karnataka-assembly-election/dk-shivakumar-the-man-who-saved-congress/articleshow/64240047.cms. live.
  10. News: DK Shivakumar: The man who checkmated Amit Shah in Karnataka. 2018-05-20. The News Minute. 2018-07-16. 3 September 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190903091401/https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/dk-shivakumar-man-who-checkmated-amit-shah-karnataka-81608. live.
  11. News: Cong's D K Shivakumar man of the match . The Times of India . 2018-07-16 . 25 February 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200225213724/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/congs-d-k-shivakumar-man-of-the-match/articleshow/64240718.cms . live .
  12. Web site: Who is DK Shivakumar? Karnataka power broker is also one of India's richest ministers. Firstpost. 2018-07-17. 14 December 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191214190957/https://www.firstpost.com/india/who-is-karnataka-minister-dk-shivakumar-i-t-dept-has-raided-one-of-the-wealthiest-ministers-in-country-3884235.html. live.
  13. Web site: D K Shivakumar declares total assets of Rs 840 crore, a staggering jump from Rs 251 crore in 2013 . The New Indian Express . 2018-04-19 . 2018-07-30 . 20 September 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190920122425/http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2018/apr/19/d-k-shivakumar-declares-total-assets-of-rs-840-crore-a-staggering-jump-from-rs-251-crore-in-2013-1803791.html . live .
  14. News: D K Shivakumar takes charge as KPCC president. 2020-07-02. The Hindu. 2020-07-02. 2 August 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210802095042/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/d-k-shivakumar-takes-charge-as-kpcc-president/article31969273.ece. live.
  15. Web site: Meet DK Shivakumar, Congress' Last 'Resort' for Tricky Trust Votes . News18 . 6 August 2018 . 6 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180806145637/https://www.news18.com/news/politics/dk-shivakumar-a-man-hated-and-loved-in-equal-measure-is-congress-man-for-all-seasons-1753439.html . live .
  16. Web site: Sathanur Assembly Constituency Election Result . resultuniversity.com . 25 Oct 2021 . 4 August 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210804172801/https://resultuniversity.com/election/sathanur-karnataka-assembly-constituency . live .
  17. Web site: Kanakapura (Karnataka) Assembly Constituency Elections . elections.in . 25 Oct 2021 . 28 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211028172739/https://www.elections.in/karnataka/assembly-constituencies/kanakapura.html . live .
  18. Web site: Shiva Kumar and Roshan Baig sworn-in as ministers in Karnataka Cabinet. The Times of India. 1 Jan 2014. 25 Oct 2021. 15 April 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220415115401/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/shiva-kumar-and-roshan-baig-sworn-in-as-ministers-in-karnataka-cabinet/articleshow/28244074.cms. live.
  19. News: D K Shivakumar takes charge as KPCC president. The Hindu. 11 Mar 2020. 25 Oct 2021. 25 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211025160451/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/dk-shivakumar-is-new-kpcc-president/article31040005.ece. live.
  20. Web site: PC Bye Election: Kanakapura 2002. indiavotes.com . 11 Sep 2023.
  21. Web site: KANAKAPURA ASSEMBLY ELECTION RESULTS (2018) . oneindia.com . 25 Oct 2021 . 15 August 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210815210340/https://www.oneindia.com/kanakapura-assembly-elections-ka-184/ . live .