Karnataka Congress chief D K Shivakumar, engaged in an intense competition with Siddaramaiah over the post of Chief Minister, left for Delhi on Tuesday morning.
"Congress party General Secretary has instructed me to come alone, I'm going to Delhi alone. My health is good," Shivakumar told reporters outside his residence before leaving for the airport, reports PTI.
He was scheduled to leave for the national capital on Monday evening but cancelled the travel plans citing ill-health.
The party scored an emphatic win in the Assembly polls with 135 seats. The results were declared on May 13.
Before leaving for Delhi, Shivakumar told reporters that he is where he is today because of Congress. "Without the party, everyone is zero," he said.
Shivakumar said that he will not blackmail or rebel, but the party's leadership should acknowledge who is behind the emphatic win in Karnataka.
"Sonia Gandhi told me, 'I have confidence in you that you will deliver Karnataka'. I am sitting here, doing my regular responsibility. You should have the basic courtesy, a bit of gratitude. They should have the courtesy to acknowledge who is behind the win," the 61-year-old told NDTV in an interview.
"I won't blackmail, that's not me. Don't perceive anything. I have my own presence of mind. I am not a child. I won't fall in a trap," Shivakumar added.
Karnataka state Congress chief DK Shivakumar, one of the two contenders for the post, will present his case to the party's national leadership on Tuesday. Senior leader Siddaramaiah, who is also eyeing the chief minister berth, arrived in Delhi on Monday.
Responding to Siddaramaiah's claim that he has the support of the MLAs, he said, "I wish him all the best."
Although the central observers — Sushil Kumar Shinde, Jitendra Singh and Deepak Babaria — maintained secrecy, sources revealed that the majority of the MLAs favoured Siddaramaiah.
The central leadership is, however, determined not to ignore Shivakumar, who has played a stellar role as state unit chief, and therefore wants to settle the matter amicably, extracting consent from both leaders.
