JOIN USMapanna Mallikarjun Kharge, who was today appointed the leader of Congress party in the Lok Sabha, is a hardcore loyalist of the Gandhi family.
A Dalit leader with more than 45 years of experience in politics, Kharge, 72, has seen a steady rise in his career graph from humble beginnings as a union leader in his home district of Gulbarga where he had always been in the forefront of championing the workers' cause.
That Kharge was unconquerable at the hustings was mirrored in recent Lok Sabha polls in which he bucked the Narendra Modi wave that swept Karnataka, particularly Hyderabad-Karnataka region. He won from Gulbarga with a margin of over 74,000 votes.
Kharge has won from Gurmitkal assembly constituency nine times in a row before he plunged into the Lok Sabha poll arena in 2009. He is now the second-time MP from Gulbarga.
A hard-boiled Congressman and loyal to the core to the Gandhi family, Kharge has played multiple roles in different ministries that has enriched his experience as an administrator.
He has also served as the leader of the opposition in Karnataka assembly and at the central level as also in the party where he had served as KPCC chief during 2008 assembly polls.
Sober by temperament and nature, Kharge has never landed in any political trouble spot or controversy.
Born in a poor family at Warwatti in Gulbarga district, he did his schooling and BA as well as Law in Gulbarga. He was into legal practice for some time before plunging into politics.