Are Karnataka Cong Leaders Giving Party President Kharge Sleepless Nights?

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge is a very worried man these days. He feels he doesn’t enjoy the heft of being party president even after his election was duly ratified at the AICC Plenary Session in Raipur in February this year. He is at the receiving end mainly from those who belong to his home state Karnataka. They give him a short shrift most of the time as they keep him waiting even after fixing appointments. Partymen from his home state who seek time to meet him in Delhi do not show up at the appointed hour and it is left to Kharge’s office to find out why they have not turned up. Another major worry for the new party chief is that he is not able to get his way even in reshuffling the AICC. Party sources said he has not been able to get either his favourites like R S Surjewala as general secretary (organisation) or give more responsibilities to Pawan Khera. He finds he is getting stymied by the elephant in the room — Rahul Gandhi — who is not allowing him to move out a K C Venugopal or a high profile Jairam Ramesh.