NEW DELHI: Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge 's son, Priyank Kharge hit out at Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath for raking up his father's personal history and a recent remark about the 1948 Razakar attack in which Kharge Senior's mother and sister were killed. In a sharp reply, Priyank acknowledged the family history and said that despite the tragedy, his father "never exploited it for political gain, never played the victim card and never let hatred define him". In a recent election rally, Yogi Adityanath had referenced the 1948 incident from Congress chief's childhood, when Razakars , the Nizam's paramilitary force in Hyderabad state, had set fire that took the lives of his mother and sister.
The BJP leader claimed that the Congress chief had kept mum on the incident for votebank politics. In a long post on X, Priyank Kharge wrote, "Yes, Yogi Adityanath ji, in 1948, the Razakars burned down Sri Mallikarjun Kharge ji’s house, taking the lives of his mother and sister. Though he narrowly escaped, he survived and rose to become a 9 time MLA, twice Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MP, central minister, the Leader of the Lok Sabha, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and an elected Congress President.
" "Despite the tragedy, he never exploited it for political gain, never played the victim card and never let hatred define him. It was the Razakars who committed this act—not the entire Muslim community. Every community has bad apples and individuals who do wrong,".
