He denied that senior Congress leaders like Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar would fight for the post if the party won the Assembly polls.
Published May 05, 2023 | 2:19 PM ⚊ Updated May 05, 2023 | 2:19 PM
RV Deshpande speaking during his election campaign in Karnataka. (Twitter)
Laxmi Devi
Veteran Congress leader RV Deshpande — who is eying a record in Karnataka if he wins for the ninth time in the Assembly poll this year — has said this could be his last election and noted he was not a man who would fight for the chief minister’s post.
Among the Congress candidates in the state, Despande (76) is the seniormost, contesting for the ninth consecutive time. He equals AICC president Mallikarjuna Kharge’s record of winning the most number of Assembly polls in the state.
Deshpande was originally not a Congress member. He switched over to the Congress in 1999 from the Janata Parivar.
Until then, he got elected to the Assembly in four elections from the Janata Parivar.
In an interview with PTI, Deshpande said: “Kharge and I have won Assembly elections eight times. If I win this time, it will be a record in the House. Nobody has won nine times.”
Asked why he has been lying low and does not figure in the list of contenders for the chief minister post despite being the senior most, he said, “I am not lying low in a way because I am a very disciplined man. I am not in any race. …there could be a desire for chief minister, but you should not fight for that.”
He denied senior Congress leaders like Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar were fighting it out for the post, should the party win the 10 May Assembly polls.
“They have a desire. If I get an offer, I will have a desire. But I am the last man to fight for that.”
Deshpande said he has worked with eight chief ministers from Ramkrishna Hegde till date. “I led padayatra against the mining mafia in Bellary. I have so many things to my credit,” he said.
Moreover, as per the Constitution, it is left to the legislative party and the high command to decide who should be the chief minister, he added.
Deshpande also mentioned, “Most likely, this could be the last election (for him). If God and voters help, this could be a record… it is difficult to fit in the current politics as the political discourse has fallen very low.”
Deshpande is contesting from the Haliyal Assembly segment, where the BJP has fielded Sunil Hegade, while SL Ghotnekar is contesting on a JD(S) ticket. The Aam Aadmi Party has fielded Gurudeep Singh Sandhu.
In a triangular fight in the Haliyal Assembly segment that has 1.75 lakh voters, the dominant Marathi-speaking population will be a decisive factor. Gotekar — a former MLC who defected from the Congress — is a Maratha and it needs to be seen in which way the votes will shift. BJP is also trying hard to defeat Deshpande.
“Marathas have shown their secular credentials in all my elections. Earlier, there were Maratha candidates contesting from this constituency, I am confident that they will definitely vote for Congress and for the work I have done,” Deshpande said.
The Congress will win with a reasonable margin, he added.
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