Can Congress field OBC PM face? Karnataka Minister responds to BJP leader's dare

Karnataka BJP MLA and Deputy Leader of Opposition Arvind Bellad challenged Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to clarify whether the party would drop himself and back an OBC candidate for the prime ministerial post. Congress leader and Karnataka Labour and Employment Minister Santosh Lad responded, asserting that greater political representation for OBC communities was the larger issue.

Speaking at the India Today Conclave South 2026, Bellad said it was “very surprising” that Rahul Gandhi had “suddenly woken up” to champion the right of ensuring reservations for the OBCs. He also targeted the Congress's position on implementing the Mandal Commission.

“It is very surprising that Rahul Gandhi has suddenly woken up. The Rajiv Gandhi government had opposed implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendations, while the subsequent Janata Dal government implemented them,” he said.

Challenging Rahul Gandhi, Bellad said, “Our current Prime Minister is an OBC PM. Can Congress say the next Prime Minister will not be Rahul Gandhi and be an OBC? If he says that, we'll appreciate and accept that whatever Congress is taking a stand is right.”

However, Lad rejected the suggestion that having an OBC Prime Minister or Chief Minister by itself addresses the issue of representation. “If somebody becomes the Chief Minister or Prime Minister from OBC, it doesn't mean he's representing the entire society. We are talking about larger interest,” Lad said.

“(PM) Modi doesn't represent 3,743 communities. How many people are representing in the Assembly, Parliament and system? This is the question which we are raising,” he said.

Lad said OBC representation should be considered across political institutions and argued that the issue was larger than the identity of an individual occupying the top political post. He said OBC communities should get greater opportunities and representation in Assemblies and Parliament.- Ends