Mallikarjun Kharge to take over as Congress president on Oct 26, says 'have to fight fascist forces'

Mallikarjun Kharge elected as Congress chief. (File image)

Congress veteran Mallikarjun Kharge, who was on October 19 declared the winner of the party's presidential polls after he defeated Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor by a huge margin, will take charge on October 26.

In his first reaction after the declaration of the result, the 80-year-old Kharge, the first non-Gandhi to lead the party in over 24 years, said the task before him was to "fight the fascist forces".

"We all have to work like workers of the party, nobody is big or small in the party. We have to unitedly fight against the fascist forces that are attacking the democratic institutions under the garb of communalism," news agency ANI quoted him as saying.

The former Union minister said he "would stand his ground" in the political battle against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), adding that the requirement was to "work together with everyone", including Tharoor.

Kharge bagged 7,897 out of the total 9,385 votes cast, while Tharoor could only manage the support of 1,072 delegates. The remaining votes were found to be invalid.

"I want to congratulate my partner Shashi Tharoor. I met him and discussed how to take the party forward," Kharge told media outside the party headquarters in New Delhi.

The presidential poll, which was held on October 17, was the fourth-time ever when the Congress had to conduct an intra-party election to choose its next chief.

Kharge would take over from Sonia Gandhi who has been serving as the interim chief since 2019.

"I want to thank Sonia Gandhi on behalf of all party workers. Under her leadership, we formed our government at the Centre twice," Kharge said.

Kharge's surprise last-minute entry in the contest is believed to have had the blessings of the Gandhis, which the veteran leader denied but rival Tharoor hinted at it when he spoke to the media after the declaration of the result.

"Leadership by and large stayed with Mr Kharge. It is not surprising if you have a choice between change and continuity, if you are part of continuity, why would you want a change," the Thiruvananthapuram MP added.

Tharoor, however, lauded Kharge's win, calling it a "victory of the Congress party". "This election was never about a person but always about the party. I always wanted to strengthen the party because strengthening Congress is very important for the country," he said.

Kharge, apart from being congratulated by party colleagues, was also greeted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"My best wishes to Shri Mallikarjun Kharge Ji for his new responsibility as President of @INCIndia. May he have a fruitful tenure ahead. (sic)," Modi tweeted.