Only Kharge's name proposed for Gulbarga seat, says D K Shivakumar

New Delhi: Amid speculation that Mallikarjun Kharge may contest the Lok Sabha polls, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday said only the Congress chief’s name has been proposed for Gulbarga constituency. 

Kharge had won Gulbarga in the 2009 and 2014 elections. 

Shivakumar said a final call on contesting the election has to be taken by Kharge himself though a lot of people have requested that he contest from his stronghold in this election.

"Only one name has been proposed from the constituency. Ultimately, the decision has to be taken by Kharge-ji. He is the Congress president. It is his call to take. He also has to travel across the country as he has more responsibilities,” Shivakumar told reporters after a meeting with Kharge here.

Kharge (82) has lost the last Lok Sabha election in Gulbarga, his first electoral defeat in five decades of political life. Following this, he was shifted to Rajya Sabha where he became Leader of the Opposition and eventually the party chief.

Earlier, there was speculation about fielding Kharge's son-in-law Radhakrishna Doddamani, a businessman, in the constituency.

Doddamani, a native of Kalaburagi, has so far maintained a low profile though he is said to be popular among party workers and supporters, especially in the Gurmitkal Assembly segment, which Kharge represented between 1972 and 2004. Doddamani used to manage Gurumital seat for Kharge for many years, sources said.

Though he has been closely associated with Kharge’s political life, Doddamani has always kept a distance from electoral politics as Karnataka minister Priyank, who is Kharge’s son, is also involved in active politics.

Congress has initiated discussions on finalising candidates with the party's Central Election Committee holding a meeting on Thursday. The CEC is learnt to have cleared the names for 11 constituencies.