Mallikarjun Kharge the new non-Gandhi congress chieftain; to what extent his dynamism will lend the party a fresh edge?

Mapanna Mallikarjun Kharge becomes the first non-Gandhi president to be chosen by the Congress in 24 years, Kharge has emerged as the winner, defeating his opponent Shashi Tharoor in the historic polls. But for the veteran politician, who has previously run in 12 elections (both Assembly and Lok Sabha) and has only experienced defeat once in 2019, winning is like a habit for him. He broke all the records of sorts when he was elected for the eighth consecutive time to the Karnataka Assembly in 2004. Similarly, He achieved another breakthrough when he was elected for the ninth time in a row to the Assembly from Chitapur.

The 80-year-old senior Congressman, Kharge, is just the second Dalit to serve as Congress chairman after Jagjivan Ram, Kharge was Born on July 21, 1942, in Bidar. He joined Congress earlier in 1969 and has held a wide range of portfolios. Mallikarjun Kharge has been the Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from Karnataka since February 16, 2021. Kharge also served as the leader of the opposition of the Rajya Sabha from February 16, 2021, to October 1, 2022.

Kharge held several primary designations in his political career, some of them were, the Minister of Railways and Minister of Labour and Employment in the Manmohan Singh government. During 2014–2019, he held the position of leader of the Congress party in Lok Sabha,

Kharge completed his education in law from Seth Shankarlal Lahoti College in Gulbarga and is acknowledged for his triumph on many labour union cases as a junior. Later, he became a labour union leader. Following this, he Presided over the Gulbarga City Congress Committee in 1969, and he contested the Karnataka State Assembly elections in 1972. In 1973, he held the position of Chairman of the Octroi Abolition Committee which tabled its report and was instrumental in giving a historic fresh leash of life to municipal and civic bodies in Karnataka by majorly boosting their economy. He initiated a string of initiatives as the Chairman of the state-owned Leather Development Corporation. He became the Minister of State for Primary Education in 1976. Over 16,000 backlog vacancies of SC/STs teachers were cleared during his tenure.

He also served as Minister of State for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development in the Devaraj Urs Ministry, as well as Minister of Revenue in the Gundu Rao Cabinet. While he was in charge, a number of land reform initiatives were carried out, and occupation rights for labourers and tillers without land were guaranteed.

He was appointed Minister for Panchayat Raj, Rural Development, and Revenue in 1990. He then held the position of Minister for Cooperation, Medium, and Large Industries in the Veerappa Moily Cabinet. In the S. M. Krishna Cabinet, he also served as Minister of the Interior.

“He (Mallikarjun Kharge) does not have the dynamism” to give a fresh edge to the party nationally– Journalist Poornima Joshi

Kharge first challenge after presiding as the AICC chief is to challenge afresh to the party’s principal opponent (The Bhartiya Janata Party). However, according to political analysts Kharge might have to overcome various challenges to efficiently take on the ruling BJP.

Firstly, He will need to demonstrate that he is in fact the chieftain of the party and is not merely acting as a stand-in for the Gandhi family. Earlier, on Monday, the congress leader told the Indian Express newspaper that he would not always consult the Nehru-Gandhi family, but he would seek their guidance since they had management expertise for the party.

Furthermore, kharge will have to handle with divisions within the Congress party, which has grown in the past several years and is evident in several parts of the country. In recent years, several senior leaders have either deserted the party or expressed their misery with its operations.

In an interview to the BBC, Political commentator Kay Benedict says, “newly elected congress chief is relatively efficient in solving ruffled feathers and decreasing tensions between different factions”. He further asserted that kharge was not among the one who will indulge in fight with others.”

On the other hand, there is also a major question triggering amongst many about whether a politician from the southern state will garner much appeal in northern states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar- which single handedly account for electing 120 MP’s.