Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge Likely To Skip Lok Sabha Contest

Is Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge planning to not contest in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections? According to an NDTV report, he appears uninterested in running and may nominate his son-in-law, Radhakrishnan Doddamani, in his place

Kharge is looking at the big picture and wants to focus on the overall campaign of Congress rather than getting involved in his own campaign. The Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha had lost the polls in 2019.

Nonetheless, if Mallikarjun Kharge opts out of contesting the Lok Sabha polls, it would mark a significant departure from recent decades, during which Congress Presidents have consistently contested in elections.

It is interesting to note that BJP President JP Nadda is not contesting in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Last week, Congress released its first list of candidates for 39 Lok Sabha constituencies. The names have been announced for Lok Sabha seats in Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshwadeep, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Sikkim, Telangana and Tripura.

Out of the 39 candidates announced, 16 hail from Kerala, seven from Karnataka, six from Chhattisgarh, and four from Telangana. Two candidates come from Meghalaya, with one each from Nagaland, Tripura, Sikkim, and Lakshadweep.

Senior party leader Rahul Gandhi will once again contest from the Wayanad constituency, which he won in 2019.

In Karnataka, the party has nominated Anandaswamy Gaddadevara Mat for Haveri, Geetha Shivarajkumar for Shivamogga, Shreyal Patel for Hassan, SP Muddahanumegowda for Tumkur, and Vekanataramegowda (popularly known as Star Chandru) for Mandya.