Veterans groom sons for 2028 poll battle | Hubballi News

Gadag: Protests demanding a Cabinet berth for senior Congress leader HK Patil, 73, continue in Gadag, with no indication that the party high command will relent. However, Patil is believed to have anticipated the move and has been encouraging the social and political activities of his son, KH Patil, 33, over the past few years.Meanwhile, speaker GS Patil, 78, has also been promoting his son, Mithun Patil, through various social initiatives. Both senior leaders are expected to focus on strengthening the party organisation while preparing the ground for their sons ahead of the 2028 assembly polls.Sources in the Gadag Congress said HK Patil had sensed the party’s move to sideline senior leaders and therefore facilitated his son’s appointment as a member of the Gadag District Guarantee Implementation Committee. “KH Patil is actively involved in social and political activities and currently serves as district Youth Congress president,” they said.Requesting anonymity, a senior Congress leader said KH Patil has strong public communication skills and the potential to carry forward the legacy of his father and grandfather, late KH Patil.“However, some members of his team lack credibility, and there is a shortage of intellectual voices around him. Both his father and grandfather had teams that included several respected intellectuals. If he addresses these shortcomings now, he can emerge as a leader in their mould,” the leader said.Social activists Venkatesh Doddamani and Kumar Nadageri said HK Patil is expected to retire from electoral politics, which is why his son has increasingly been participating in official govt programmes. “When some netizens objected to his participation, KH Patil was appointed a member of the Gadag District Guarantee Implementation Committee,” they said.Mithun Patil, 48, has also been active in public and social life in Ron for the past four to five years. “As president of the Ron Assembly Constituency Guarantee Implementation Committee, he has inaugurated and laid foundation stones for several govt projects. He has also taken charge of many of his father’s public responsibilities. Though there has been no formal announcement, there is a growing perception in the constituency that Mithun will be the Congress candidate from Ron in the 2028 assembly polls,” several Congress workers in Ron said.