Kharge’s win makes 3 Karnataka Congressmen happy, leaves BJP worried

Mallikarjun Kharge’s elevation as Congress president has brought smiles to the faces of three of his party colleagues in Karnataka, and pain for the state unit of the BJP. The happy leaders are former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, KPCC chief DK Shivakumar (DKS), and former Deputy Chief Minister and Dalit leader Dr G Parameshwara.

Kharge was a threat to Siddaramaiah’s dream of becoming chief minister again if the party returned to power in the 2023 elections. When the Congress lost many seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, a year after Siddaramaiah took over as CM, Kharge’s name as a replacement cropped up now and then. 

Also read: Turmoil in Karnataka Congress as DKS-Siddaramaiah rift resurfaces

The Congress hopes to return to power in the 2023 Assembly elections. In that case, there was a chance of the party giving the CM post to Kharge to skirt around the infighting between Siddaramaiah and DKS. Sources in the Siddaramaiah camp said he is happy — now, he only has DKS to tackle.

All about politics

However, DKS is closer to Kharge, which is reason for him to be happy. If it ever comes to DKS vs Siddaramaiah as CM, Kharge is likely to back the former, though the final decision may still depend on what the Gandhis say. Kharge has always maintained a distance from Siddaramaiah and did not show much interest in the 2018 elections, mainly in the Chamundeshwari constituency, where the latter lost. 

Also read: Kharge: After 54 years, Cong gets its 2nd party president from Karnataka

And then there is Parameshwara, who served as Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief for eight years. He has always dreamt of becoming the CM. He has been patiently waiting for his chance and maintaining good rapport with both Siddaramaiah and DKS. He does not want to lose his MLA seat again because of Siddaramaiah’s fan base in the Koratagere constituency.

But what’s mostly driving the joy is the fact that he is Karnataka’s biggest Dalit leader after Kharge. Whenever he tried to pitch himself as CM in the past, with the Dalit tag, Kharge’s name would crop up. Now, the obstruction is gone. At the same time, his camp feels that Kharge might support him in future, as no Dalit has occupied the Karnataka CM’s seat yet.

Worry for BJP

On the other hand, Kharge’s new post has caused rival BJP to worry. The state BJP is eying Dalit votes in the upcoming elections. Recently, it hiked the reservation percentage for SCs and STs in a move to woo Dalits. But Kharge can mobilise Dalit votes for Congress along with Backward Class leader Siddaramaiah. It may be a major threat to the BJP in the polls.

Also read: Karnataka BJP eyes TN model to hike quotas, with eye on 2023 polls

However, the BJP is mainly wooing a sub-sect of Dalits called Madiga, or Eda Kai (Left), which has also been supporting the BJP of late. Congress leaders, including Kharge and Parameshwar, come from the Dalit community of Holeya, or Bala Kai (Right).

Kharge has always batted for not dividing Dalits in the name of Left and Right. Political observers in the state say he has the vision to bring the sub-sects together for the betterment of SCs financially and with education. This is giving the BJP more sleepless nights, as it may erode its “growing Dalit base” in the state.