Lok Sabha elections 2024: Kharge family's Radhakrishna to contest from Gulbarga?

Bengaluru: The Congress is discussing the idea of fielding Radhakrishna Doddamani, son-in-law of party president Mallikarjun Kharge, as the candidate from the Gulbarga Lok Sabha constituency.

Radhakrishna, a businessman who is said to have started one of Bengaluru's oldest gas agencies, is also the brother-in-law of IT/BT Minister Priyank Kharge.

According to sources, Radhakrishna's name is being talked about within the party. "Mallikarjun Kharge will have the final say. He is likely to discuss this with Sonia Gandhi before making a decision," a source close to the Kharge family said.

Born in Kalaburagi, Radhakrishna is said to be well-known in Gurmitkal, which Mallikarjun Kharge represented consecutively between 1972 and 2004.

In 2019, Mallikarjun Kharge faced his first electoral defeat when he lost from the Gulbarga Lok Sabha segment to BJP's Umesh Jadhav. The veteran is said to be keen on retribution.

'Not even our dead bodies...'

In the Assembly on Thursday, Priyank declared that no one from the Kharge family will join the BJP. "Not even our dead bodies will go there (BJP)," he said.

This exchange happened when Deputy Leader of the Opposition Arvind Bellad remarked that Priyank is a future chief minister of the Congress. To this, Priyank said: "If that means you'll sit in the Opposition, then it's alright."

BJP's Basanagouda Patil Yatnal claimed that many leaders from other parties may join the saffron party. "There's speculation about Kamal Nath. There's also talk that Mallikarjun Kharge will join BJP," Yatnal said, prompting Priyank to vehemently reject the idea.

"Just like you don't have the Constitution in your blood, we don't have RSS in our blood," Priyank said.