Hope Kharge doesn’t end up as proxy of Gandhis, says Pralhad Joshi

Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi hoped that senior Congress leader from Karnataka, Mallikarjun Kharge, who is tipped to become next AICC president, does not end up like former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh - a remote controlled puppet.

Speaking to media persons here on Saturday, Joshi said Congress has turned into a ‘family holding’. “Without Gandhis the Congress cannot function. Kharge is a senior statesman who is in public life for decades now. However, my only concern is he will also end up being remote-controlled by the Gandhis, like former PM Manmohan Singh,” he said.

Responding to a question on the ongoing Bharat Jodo Yatra led by former Congress president Rahul Gandhi that entered Karnataka recently, Joshi said there is no objection to the yatra being taken up by Rahul. “Our request to the Congress leaders is not to meet ‘Bharat Thodo’ people (in Karnataka), like they did in Kerala, and disturb communal harmony here,” he said.