Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday announced that he was retiring from electoral politics.

The Congress leader said that he will not contest the 2028 Assembly elections, saying that the “political field has become corrupted”. However, Siddaramaiah said that he will remain active in politics.

Siddaramaiah was the longest-serving chief minister of Karnataka with a tenure of more than eight years across two terms. The 78-year-old served as the chief minister between 2013 and 2018. His most recent term had begun in May 2023.

In June, he resigned from the post on May 28 to make way for a new chief minister, as ordered by the Congress leadership. He was replaced by party’s DK Shivakumar on June 3.

At an event in Mandya district on Sunday, Siddaramaiah said that the public in his Varuna constituency were urging him to contest the state polls.

“But I have decided that I should not contest in any elections henceforth,” he said. “In the past, when I contested elections, it was the people of the constituency who gave us money and ensured our victory. But today, such a situation no longer exists.”

The Congress leader said that he will be 80 years old when the next state elections are held and that his health “is not as robust” as it used to be. The polls are expected to be held in May 2028.

“The time has come where, if we contest elections, we would have to give money to the people,” he said. “Politics today is thoroughly corrupted. Honest politics seems to have no leg to stand on. In this backdrop, I have arrived at the decision not to contest in future elections.”

After resigning as the chief minister, Siddaramaiah had been inducted into the Congress Working Committee, the executive body of the party.

Siddaramaiah, Shivakumar and state Congress chief BK Hariprasad were expected to travel to Delhi on Monday for a possible meeting with the Congress leadership to finalise candidates for the Cabinet expansion, the Hindustan Times reported.

Written by Nachiket Deuskar. Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

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