Kumaraswamy cannot tolerate a Dalit like me making political progress: Priyank Kharge

Minister of Home Affairs, IT-BT and e-Governance Priyank Kharge. File. | Photo credit: ARUN KULKARNI

Home Minister Priyank Kharge on Sunday (October 18, 2026) accused Union Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) leader HD Kumaraswamy of being unable to tolerate the political and social progress of Dalits.

Reacting strongly to Mr. Kumaraswamy’s remarks directed at him, he said that his attire and ability to speak English seemed to become a source of irritation for the JD(S) leader.

“If my wearing a suit is intolerable for Mr. Kumaraswamy, I will get 10 suits stitched and wear them. If my speaking English is intolerable for him, I will continue to speak English. He can become a film producer and a realtor. But he cannot tolerate a dalit like me making political progress,” Kharge said at a press conference in Kalaburagi.

Reacting to Mr. Kumaraswamy’s padayatra, Mr. Kharge claimed that the former chief minister had never taken such marches in the public interest.

“Let him undertake padayatras and stay healthy. Let him release the evidence regarding the alleged sting operation targeting former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Let people know who was behind it. The needle of suspicion is pointing towards him and that is why he is doing all this,” he said.

Mr. Kharge alleged that Mr. Kumaraswamy had never undertaken a padayatra for farmers or women, nor had he raised issues related to Karnataka before the Union government. He accused the JD(S) leader of undertaking such activities purely for personal interests.

“A man who has lied to his own family several times and later apologized in a rally cannot tell people the truth,” he said.

When asked about Mr Kumaraswamy’s claim that JD(S) activists were targeted in the probe into the alleged sting operation involving Mr Siddaramaiah, Mr Kharge said the police could not be expected to stop their investigation just because JD(S) activists were suspects.

“Should the police refrain from issuing notices and summoning suspects for questioning just because they are JD(S) activists? Mr. Kumaraswamy insists that the police should investigate the matter. But when they do, he accuses them of targeting his party’s activists. The police are conducting investigations impartially and are not working the way Mr. Khamaraswamy wants them to.

Responding to Mr Kumaraswamy’s objection to Mr Kharge and his father, AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, who had fought against elections from constituencies reserved for scheduled castes, the home minister questioned whether the society was mature enough to elect Dalit candidates from general constituencies.

“President Droupadi Murmu was not allowed to enter the temple because she was a tribal woman. A purification ritual was performed at a place in Uttarakhand after Congress President and Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, a Dalit leader, addressed a public rally. This is the mindset of our society which forces Dalits to contest elections from their reserved constituencies.

MLC Jagadev Guttedar, GESCOM Chairman Praveen Patil Harwal, District Congress Committee President Kiran Deshmukh and other Congress leaders were present.

Published – 18 Oct 2026 15:02 IST