Karnataka Elections 2023: Congress alleges plot to kill Kharge & family; BJP denies charge, promises inquiry into audio clip

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala on Saturday claimed that leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are plotting to murder Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and his family members. Surjewala has said that the Congress has an audio clip of BJP candidate Manikanta Rathod discussing the alleged plan. Rathod is contesting against Kharge's son, Priyank Kharge, who is the sitting MLA from Chittapur.

Surjewala accused the BJP of stooping to new lows in the political discourse, and has claimed that the alleged plot is a result of the BJP's frustration at facing a complete rout in the elections. He has also said that the audio recording of Rathod shows that the BJP candidate is the blue-eyed boy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.

"BJP leaders are now hatching a plot to murder Mallikarjun Kharge and his family members. This is now clear from the recording of BJP's candidate from Chittapur who also happens to be the blue-eyed boy of PM Modi and CM Bommai," he said.

Surjewala has further claimed that the BJP's alleged plot to murder Kharge and his family is a result of their designed hatred towards Karnataka's son of the soil, Kharge.

Basavaraj Bommai promises an inquiry into the matter

Reacting to the allegation, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai promised an inquiry. "We will take the matter seriously. We will inquire into the whole thing and the law will take its action," said Bommai.

In addition to this, Rathod has denied the charges and said that the audio was fake and fabricated by the Congress party to malign his image, adding that he has no intention to harm Kharge. 

"It is all a lie. They are playing some fake audio. The Congress is levelling baseless allegations fearing defeat," said Rathod.

Karnataka Assembly Election 2023

The Karnataka Assembly Election 2023 will be held on May 10 and the result will be declared on May 13, 2023, after the counting of the votes.

Out of 224 seats in the Karnataka Assembly, a party needs a total of 113 seats to mark a majority in the election.

2018 Karnataka Assembly Elections

In 2018, the Karnataka Assembly Elections were conducted on May 12. The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the single largest party with 104 seats. However, the party failed to touch the majority mark of 112. The Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) who secured second and third positions with 78 and 38 seats respectively, decided to join hands to form a coalition government in the state.