Mallikarjun Kharge becomes first non-Gandhi Congress chief in 24 years

Senior Congress Mallikarjun Kharge has been elected as the new party President. Kharge, with 7,897 votes, defeated Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor, who got 1,072 votes on Wednesday (October 19).

This was the sixth party chief election in Congress's 137-year-old history. Tharoor conceded defeat and congratulated Kharge on his win.

Kharge's election agent Gaurav Gogoi called it a historic moment. "It's a historic moment. We're proud that we held poll in such a democratic manner. We also feel gratitude towards Sonia Gandhi who took charge of the party during a difficult time. In the time to come, Congress will further strengthen itself," Gogoi said to ANI.

The voting process which took place on October 17 saw 9,915 Congress Pradesh Committee delegates vote at nearly 65 polling stations across the country. This is the first time in 24 years that a non-Gandhi has been handed over the responsibility of leading the Congress party ahead of several state elections and General elections of 2024.

Meet Mallikarjun Kharge:

• Mallikarjun Kharge is a veteran politician who comes from Karnataka. 
• He has won assembly elections in Karnataka for a record 9 times: 1972, 1978, 1983, 1985, 1989, 1994, 2004, 2008 and 2009.
• Kahrge was the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha from 2014-19. 
• In the Manmohan Singh-led UPA 2 government, Kharge was first made the Labour Minister and then he was given the railways portfolio.
• He was the leader of Rajya Sabha from February 16, 2021 to October 1, 2022.
• Kharge was an MP from the Gulbarga constituency in Karnataka from 2009-2019.
• In the 2019 general elections, he lost the seat to BJP's Umesh Jadhav.

Kharge's rise in national politics:

• Malikarjun Kharge rose in the national politics in 2014 when Sonia Gandhi appointed him as the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha.
• Kharge was the Dalit face and was a nine-time MLA and then an MP from Gulbarga constituency.
• Rahul Gandhi was reluctant to take up the charge despite the other Congress leaders wanting him to lead the party.
• Kharge appointment was a surprise decision by Sonia Gandhi.