Bengaluru:

The Karnataka BJP has alleged that Congress President M Mallikarjun Kharge’s social media is managed by “foreign handlers”, referring to a verified Facebook page in his name, a charge debunked by his son.

Mr Kharge’s son and Karnataka Minister for Electronics Priyank Kharge said the page is “fake” and that they have requested Facebook to take it down.

“Mallikarjun Kharge, who is in news for waqf land grab, now has foreign handlers managing his social media. We’ve been warning about the foreign influence behind Congress’s divisive caste-based politics, and this only confirms it. Why@khargeji?,” Karnataka BJP posted on X.

“Why trust foreign handlers over your own people? After all that India has given you, why this betrayal?” it asked, sharing a screenshot of “page information” from a Facebook page in Mallikarjun Kharge’s name.

Mallikarjun Kharge, who is in news for waqf land grab, now has foreign handlers managing his social media. We’ve been warning about the foreign influence behind Congress’s divisive caste-based politics, and this only confirms it. Why @kharge ji? Why trust foreign handlers over… pic.twitter.com/bsPqKwMVZF

— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) October 15, 2024

The “page information” of the Facebook page bearing Mallikarjun Kharge’s name says, “Primary country/region location for people who manage this Page includes: Norway (1)” Mallikarjun Kharge is also the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha.

Hitting back at BJP’s post, Priyank Kharge said despite having what they claim to be the “most effective Home Minister” in India’s history (referring to Amit Shah), BJP cannot determine whether an Opposition Leader’s account is genuine.

I truly appreciate the relentless efforts of @BJP4India‘s IT Cell. For just ₹2, they’ve launched a malicious social media campaign against Congress President, Shri @kharge.

For clarity, Shri Kharge has only two official social media accounts:

– X (Twitter):… https://t.co/EcYOFyFPjp

— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) October 17, 2024

“I truly appreciate the relentless efforts of @BJP4India’s IT Cell. For just Rs 2, they’ve launched a malicious social media campaign against Congress President, Shri @kharge,” he said in a post on X.

“For clarity, Mr Kharge has only two official social media accounts,” he said, sharing the links of the Congress president’s X account and WhatsApp channel.

Instead of focusing on pressing national issues, BJP seems obsessed with investigating a dead Facebook page that hasn’t been active since 2020, linked to an unknown email, Priyank Kharge said, adding, “Since we have no idea who is behind it, we’ve officially requested Facebook to take it down. Moreover, a Facebook Blue Tick is easily obtained through a paid subscription.” 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)