In this Indian name, the name Doddalahalli Kempegowda is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Shivakumar.

D. K. Shivakumar
18th Chief Minister of Karnataka
Designate
Assuming office
3 June 2026[1]
Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot
Succeeding Siddaramaiah
Member of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office
15 May 2008
Preceded by P. G. R. Sindhia
Constituency Kanakapura
In office
30 November 1989 – 15 May 2008
Preceded by K. L. Shivalinge Gowda
Succeeded by Constituency abolished
Constituency Sathanur
28th President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 July 2020
AICC President
  • Sonia Gandhi (until 2022)
  • Mallikarjun Kharge (from 2022)
Preceded by Dinesh Gundu Rao
9th Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka
In office
20 May 2023 – 3 June 2026
Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot
Chief Minister
Siddaramaiah
Portfolios
  • Water Resources Department (Major and Medium Irrigation)
  • Bengaluru City Development (BBMP, BDA, BWSSB, BMRDA, BMRCL, GBA)
Preceded by
  • Laxman Savadi
  • C. N. Ashwath Narayan
  • Govind Karjol
Cabinet Minister, Government of Karnataka
In office
11 July 2014 – 23 July 2019
Governor
  • H. R. Bhardwaj
  • Konijeti Rosaiah
  • Vajubhai Vala
Chief Minister
  • H. D. Kumaraswamy
  • Siddaramaiah
Portfolios
  • Water Resources
  • Medical Education
  • Energy
Preceded by
  • M. B. Patil
  • Sharan Prakash Patil
  • K. S. Eshwarappa
Succeeded by
  • Ramesh Jarkiholi
  • E. Tukaram
Working President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee
In office
2008–2010
Preceded by Office established
Succeeded by Eshwara Khandre (2018)
Personal details
Born (1962-05-15) 15 May 1962 (age 64)
Kanakapura, Mysore State, India
Party Indian National Congress
Spouse Usha Shivakumar
Children 3
Relatives D. K. Suresh (brother)
Occupation Politician

Doddalahalli Kempegowda Shivakumar (born 15 May 1962), popularly known as DKS, is an Indian politician and businessman who is serving as the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka. He is a member of the Indian National Congress and is the President of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) since 2020. He previously served as the party's Working President from 2008 to 2010 and as a cabinet minister in the Government of Karnataka from 2014 to 2019.

Shivakumar has represented the Kanakapura Assembly constituency in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly since 2008. Prior to this, he represented the Sathanur Assembly constituency from 1989 to 2008.

Personal life

Shivakumar was born to Kempegowda and Gour amma[2] in Kanakapura[3] near Bangalore, Karnataka. He belongs to the Vokkaliga community.[4]

He has a younger brother D. K. Suresh who's also a politician.[5] Shivakumar married Usha in 1993 and has two daughters, Aishwarya and Aabharana, and a son Aakash with her. His elder daughter is married to Amartya, son of Café Coffee Day founder V. G. Siddhartha.[6]

He is one of the richest politicians in India.[7]

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.[8] 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 and 2023.[9][10][11][12][13]

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.[14]

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][15]

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.[16]

He is also a close confidante of party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.[17] Shivakumar is among the richest politicians in India. While filing his nomination for election in 2018, he declared total assets of ₹840 crore.[18]

On 2 July 2020, Shivakumar officially took as Karnataka PCC president succeeding Dinesh Gundu Rao.[19]

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

On 03 June 2026, Shivakumar was elevated to the position of Chief Minister of Karnataka, following the resignation of Siddaramaiah.[21]

Positions held

Year Position Ref
1989–1994 Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Minister of Prisons and Homeguards (17 October 1990 – 19 November 1992)
 [22]
1994–1999 Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly [22]
1999–2004 Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Minister of Urban Development (11 October 1999 – 20 May 2004)
 [10]
2004–2008 Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly [10]
2008–2013 Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • KPCC Working President ( 2008 – 2010)
 [11]
2013–2018 Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Minister of Energy (11 July 2014 – 19 May 2018)
 [13]
2018–2023 Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Minister of Major Irrigation and Medical Education (23 May 2018 – 23 July 2019)
  • Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee President (2 July 2020 – present)
 [23]
2023– Member, Karnataka Legislative Assembly
  • Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka (20 May 2023 - 3 June 2026)
  • Chief Minister of Karnataka (3 June 2026 - present)

Electoral statistics

Year Election Constituency Name Party Result Votes gained Vote share% Margin Ref
1985 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Sathanur INC Lost 29,809 38.78% 15,803 [10]
1989 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Sathanur INC Won 44,595 49.77% 13,650 [10]
1994 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Sathanur IND Won 48,270 46.08% 568 [10]
1999 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Sathanur INC Won 56,050 54.64% 14,387 [10]
2002
(bypoll)		 Lok Sabha Kanakapura INC Lost 529,133 37.61% 52,576 [24]
2004 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Sathanur INC Won 51,603 47.91% 13,928 [10]
2008 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Kanakapura INC Won 68,096 48.34% 7,179 [11]
2013 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Kanakapura INC Won 100,007 56.77% 31,424 [11]
2018 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Kanakapura INC Won 127,552 68.52% 79,909 [12]
2023 Karnataka Legislative Assembly Kanakapura INC Won 143,023 75.00% 122,392 [11]

References

  1. ^ Gautam, Sagay RajRahul (29 May 2026). "DK Shivakumar to take oath as Karnataka Chief Minister on June 3". India Today. Retrieved 30 May 2026.
  2. ^ "Shivakumar's father passes away". The Hindu. 1 January 2014. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  3. ^ Swamy, Rohini (4 August 2017). "DK Shivakumar: The man called tiger of Sathanur". India Today. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  4. ^ "D K Shivakumar: Congress's trusted Vokkaliga strategist-strongman". Hindustan Times. 2 August 2017. Archived from the original on 1 September 2019. Retrieved 1 September 2019.
  5. ^ "DK Shivakumar likely to be Karnataka Congress chief". Hindustan Times. 16 February 2020. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  6. ^ "VVIPs from Delhi to land in Bengaluru for wedding of DK Shivakumar's daughter- the New Indian Express". Archived from the original on 2 March 2021. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  7. ^ "D.K.Shivakumar Assets". Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  8. ^ Prabhu, Nagesh (22 April 2023). "D.K. Shivakumar | Congress's man for all seasons". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 4 May 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  9. ^ a b "DK Shivakumar: The man who saved Congress". Bangalore Mirror. Archived from the original on 16 July 2018. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h "Sathanur Assembly Constituency Election Result". resultuniversity.com. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  11. ^ a b c d e "Kanakapura (Karnataka) Assembly Constituency Elections". elections.in. Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  12. ^ a b "KANAKAPURA ASSEMBLY ELECTION RESULTS (2018)". oneindia.com. Archived from the original on 15 August 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  13. ^ a b "Shiva Kumar and Roshan Baig sworn-in as ministers in Karnataka Cabinet". The Times of India. 1 January 2014. Archived from the original on 15 April 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  14. ^ Swamy, Rohini (11 March 2020). "Why DK Shivakumar is the Congress' choice to lead the party out of a hole in Karnataka". ThePrint. Archived from the original on 4 May 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  15. ^ "DK Shivakumar: The man who checkmated Amit Shah in Karnataka". The News Minute. 20 May 2018. Archived from the original on 3 September 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
  16. ^ "Cong's D K Shivakumar man of the match". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 25 February 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
  17. ^ "Who is DK Shivakumar? Karnataka power broker is also one of India's richest ministers". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  18. ^ "D K Shivakumar declares total assets of Rs 840 crore, a staggering jump from Rs 251 crore in 2013". The New Indian Express. 19 April 2018. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  19. ^ "D K Shivakumar takes charge as KPCC president". The Hindu. 2 July 2020. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  20. ^ Desk, India Today News (18 May 2023). "Karnataka: Shivakumar accepts formula, says 'more responsibility on me now'". India Today. Retrieved 30 May 2026. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  21. ^ Gautam, Sagay RajRahul (29 May 2026). "DK Shivakumar to take oath as Karnataka Chief Minister on June 3". India Today. Retrieved 30 May 2026.
  22. ^ a b "Meet DK Shivakumar, Congress' Last 'Resort' for Tricky Trust Votes". News18. Archived from the original on 6 August 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  23. ^ "D K Shivakumar takes charge as KPCC president". The Hindu. 11 March 2020. Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  24. ^ "PC Bye Election: Kanakapura 2002". indiavotes.com. Retrieved 11 September 2023.