Bidar: While several Congress MLAs are unhappy over being denied a Cabinet berth in the coalition government, leader of the party in the Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday made an oblique reference to the fact that he has been waiting in the wings for long to become Chief Minister. “If Bidar MLA, Rahim Khan is hurt over being denied a Cabinet berth, think of my situation. I have been in politics for over 50 years and won 11 elections without a break. How much pain should I have experienced in my life!” he observed, in an obvious reference to his as yet unfulfilled dream of becoming Chief Minister.
Mr Kharge, who was speaking at the felicitation of Mr Rajashekhar Patil Humnabad on his becoming the Minister for Mines and Geology and Muzrai by the Bidar District Congress Committee, revealed that he intended to contest the coming Lok Sabha elections from Kalaburagi. “I have contested 11 elections and want to contest one more. Let’s see,” he said.
Although the senior Congress leader regretted that the party failed to get a majority in the recent Assembly election, he consciously refrained from spelling out the reasons for its failure. “The last state government gave good governance and fulfilled all the promises it had made, even effectively implementing Article 372 (J) (giving Hyderabad-Karnataka special status). But strangely it failed to get the people’s mandate. I don’t know what went wrong,” he lamented. On the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in the state, Mr Kharge said it had become neccessary to keep the BJP from coming to power. “There is no other agenda. I’m confident this coalition government will complete its full five year term,” he added.
