While the imbroglio in Karnataka was moving in full swing, the political beat reporters were not restless but were fixated on one residence in Delhi to cover the happenings. It was 51 Lodhi Estate, Delhi. The house of AICC general secretary K C Venugopal. Mr. Venugopal is a man Friday of Rahul Gandhi and can be traced wherever the Gandhi scions are present. While the Karnataka boiled up with D K Shivakumar and Siddaramaaiah doing a tug of war for the CM seat, the Gandhis were not flummoxed as media covered but were oddly released as they just had to assign duty to their favorite troubleshooter, the Kerala man, K C Venugopal.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge gave just one order to Venugopal, that the government formation should not go beyond the said date. The words were etched into Venugopal's mind. The parleys started to help assuage the factions in Karnataka. Sonia Gandhi even had to step in to end the tussle but the underdog was Venugopal, who perfected his role as a mediator conveying the Gandhi family's decision to the leaders in Karnataka at his lucid best.

All leaders gathered at Venugopal's residence to brainstorm a peaceful exit to the issue. D K Shivakumar stuck to his stance resolutely and was not in any mood to abide by Congress’s terms. However, K C Venugopal tuned pages from history to assure D K about powerful roles including vital portfolios awaiting him in Karnataka. Venugopal did no different from Surjewala or Kharghe but Shivakumar was convinced enough to allow Siddaramaiah become the CM in Karnataka. The knack was all Venugopal's political acumen nurtured over the years, concentrating and imbibing from leaders on how politics ran across different sections and moreover, how good it was to remain grounded while being shrewd.