Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge lost his cool on party workers during the Sankalpa Samavisha program in Bengaluru after a section of the crowd repeatedly raised ‘DK-DK’ slogans in support of Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar.
A video from the event showed workers chanting Shivakumar’s initials, while senior Congress leaders, including Shivakumar and AICC general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala, appeared to urge the crowd to calm down.
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Watch the video here:
Kharj interrupted his speech, reprimanded the workers and warned of taking disciplinary measures.
“Will the entire country be affected if you shout here? This is not an individual programme, it is a party programme. Useless colleagues… There is no cult of individuals here. We are here for the party program that brings us all together,” Karg said.
The Congress president also cited his long political career while warning party workers against personality-centric politics.
“I have 58 years of political experience. Many leaders have come here; although their contribution to the party is small, the party has made a very big contribution to them. Whoever shouts here, there will be footage, and I will take disciplinary measures after reviewing the footage,” he said.
On June 4, DK Shivakumar was sworn in as Karnataka Chief Minister, formally taking charge of the state government along with Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara and the 12-member Cabinet, bringing an end to his long-standing leadership tussle with his predecessor Siddaramaiah.
Soon after taking oath, Shivakumar chaired the first Cabinet meeting and announced a series of youth-focused initiatives, including free bus tickets for students and formation of 10,000 Bharat Guddu Yuva Sangas aimed at nurturing leadership skills and promoting social harmony.
Dressed in a silk kurta and dhoti, Shivakumar took oath as revered seer Vira Gangadhara Ajaya while holding a copy of the Constitution. Then he bowed before the audience and paid his respects after taking the constitutional oath.