Terming his defeat in the last Lok Sabha election on his home turf of Kalaburagi as an act of “deception”, All-India Congress Committee (AICC) president and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha M. Mallikarjun Kharge has called upon the people to “avenge” his defeat by electing Congress candidates in this polls.
Mr. Kharge has decided not to contest from the Kalaburagi Lok Sabha constituency. He had won the Assembly elections nine times in a row since 1972 and the Lok Sabha polls twice from Kalaburagi in 2009 and 2014. He tasted his first defeat in the 2019 Lok Sabha election against BJP’s Umesh Jadhav. His son-in-law Radhakrishna Doddamani is contesting from the Kalaburagi seat this time.
“This time, you should avenge my defeat by defeating the BJP and electing the Congress,” Mr. Kharge said at a public meeting that he addressed after his son-in-law filed his nomination papers on Friday.
