In a sharp response to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s barbs at his father and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge has said the veteran leader never exploited personal tragedy for “political gain” and never played “victim card”.

The junior Kharge was responding to the firebrand BJP leader’s barbs at his father while campaigning for the November 20 Maharashtra Assembly polls. Countering Mallikarjun Kharge’s “leaders in the guise of sadhus” remark, Mr Adityanath referred to the Congress’s chief childhood tragedy when his mother died in a arson by Razakars, a paramilitary wing that worked for the Nizam in the then princely state of Hyderabad. Mr Adityanath said Mr Kharge had “buried his feelings” for the sake of Congress’s “votebank politics”.

“These days Khargeji is getting angry with me… Khargeji, don’t get angry at me. I respect your age. If you want to get angry… get angry at the Hyderabad Nizam. The Nizam’s ‘razakars’ burnt your village, brutally killed Hindus, and burnt your respected mother, sister, and family members. Present this truth before the country – whenever they will be divided, they will be divided in the same brutal manner,” the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister said.

“His village was under the Nizam of Hyderabad… when India was under the British. There was a fire… this was when Hindus were being selectively killed. And, in this fire, his home was also burned down, in which his mother and family were killed. But Khargeji does not say this… because he knows if he says it, then Muslim votes will shift. He forgot the sacrifice of his family for the sake of votes,” Mr Adityanath said.

Responding to the remarks, Mr Kharge’s son Priyank said his father narrowly escaped death during that tragic incident and went on to become a 9-time MLA, an MP, a Union Minister, Leader of the Opposition and a Congress president. “Despite the tragedy, he never exploited it for political gain, never played the victim card and never let hatred define him,” he added in a post on X.

The Karnataka minister said the atrocities against the Kharge family was committed by Razakars, not the entire Muslim community. “Every community has bad apples and individuals who do wrong.”

Priyank Kharge said the 82-year-old Congress chief is fighting tirelessly to uphold the values of Buddha-Basavanna-Ambedkar and to protect the Constitution.

“So, Yogi Ji, take your hate elsewhere. You cannot bulldoze his principles or his ideology. Try winning the elections on PM @narendramodi ji’s ‘achievements’ instead trying to sow seeds of hatred in the society for political gains,” the Congress leader said.

Earlier, Mr Kharge had launched a veiled attack on the BJP leader over his “batenge to katenge” remarks that the Opposition has described as divisive.

“Many (political) leaders live in the guise of sadhus and become politicians… some even become chief ministers. They wear gerua (saffron) clothes and have no hair on their heads…,” the Congress chief said, clearly referring to Mr Adityanath. “I would say… either wear white clothes or, if you are a sanyasi, get out of politics.”

“On the one hand you wear gerua clothes… on the other you say ‘batenge toh katenge’. They are spreading hatred among the people and are trying to divide them,” he had said.