Huge welcome for Kharge in 1st visit to Karnataka after Congress prez polls

This is the first time Kharge came to his home turf after being elected as the national president of the grand old party.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge reached Bengaluru on Sunday and received a rousing welcome by the party members in the state. This is the first time Kharge came to his home turf after being elected as the national president of the grand old party.

Huge welcome for Kharge in 1st visit to Karnataka after Congress prez polls (HT_PRINT)

Karnataka Congress leaders - DK Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah - welcomed Kharge at the Bengaluru airport on Sunday afternoon.

A post by the Karnataka Congress on Twitter read, “Mr. @kharge is making his debut on home soil for the first time after being elected as a unanimous leader, president of the AICC in the hope of democracy. AICC President was received at Bangalore International Airport.- (sic)”

The party also called it "a proud moment" for every Kannadiga in the state. Another post read, “It is a matter of celebration for all the Kannadigas that a Kannadiga has occupied the position of President of the Congress, a historical party that is intertwined with the country's heritage.”

Kharge will attend a felicitation ceremony - ‘Sarvodaya Samevesha’ - at Bengaluru’s Palace Grounds on Sunday evening. This ceremony is being viewed as Karnataka Congress's show of strength, ahead of the assembly elections in 2023.

Mallikarjun Kharge became the president of grand old party after he defeated MP Sashi Tharoor in an internal election. The 80-year-old leader from Karnataka’s Kalaburagi is the first non-Gandhi Congress president in 24 years and it is being anticipated that his ascent to the top post will benefit the Congress in the poll-bound state.