Congress reshuffle in poll-bound states with eye on attracting new sections, keeping seniors happy

New Delhi: Congress has signalled the initiation of the much-awaited organisational changes starting with poll-bound states, where new leadership has been inducted with an eye on attracting new sections to the party and keeping influential leaders happy.

On Friday night, party president Mallikarjun Kharge cleared the deck for changes announcing new leadership in Jharkhand, and Jammu and Kashmir, besides elevating senior leaders to the national level and appointing a working president from a minority community in Maharashtra.

Some other states will also see changes, while at the national level, new AICC Secretaries are likely to be appointed soon.

In Jharkhand, where Assembly polls are due later this year, Congress replaced Rajesh Thakur with Keshav Mahto Kamlesh with an aim to minimise the advantage of the Sudesh Mahto-led All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU), an ally of BJP.

Congress sources said BJP always benefitted when AJSU joined hands with them as Sudesh Mahto managed to bring in Mahto community votes to the NDA and with the elevation of former minister Kamlesh, they hope to clip BJP’s prospects.

Another concern for the party was the Jharkhand Bhasha Khatiyan Sangharsh Samiti led by 29-year-old Jairam Mahto, coming third in six of eight Lok Sabha seats where it fought as independents and bagging 8.2 lakh votes. Jairam himself bagged 3.47 lakh votes and came third in Giridih.

The appointments for the Jammu and Kashmir unit came on the day the Election Commission announced the schedule for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections.

The grand old party named senior leader Tariq Ahmed Karra as its president, with sources indicating that the change came as the outgoing chief Vikar Rasool Wani was from the Jammu region, and the party wanted a leader from Kashmir valley to lead them in the Assembly polls.

It also appointed Tara Chand and Raman Bhalla as Working Presidents. Wani was nominated as a Special Invitee to the Congress Working Committee while Karra, who has been a Permanent Invitee in the CWC, has been removed from the top panel.

Maharashtra also saw a balancing act where a section of leaders are upset with the way state president Nana Patole functions. Senior leader Balasaheb Thorat, who was earlier Congress Legislature Party leader in Maharashtra, returned to CWC as a member in place of Ashok Chavan who joined BJP.

In a decision seen as a reachout to the minority community, the party also appointed Naseem Khan, a prominent Muslim leader in Maharashtra, as Special Invitee to the CWC besides choosing Syed Muzaffar Hussain as Working President of Maharashtra Congress.

Khan was a serious contender for the Mumbai North Central Lok Sabha seat which finally went to Varsha Gaikwad. The latest appointment is seen as the party recognising Khan’s influence among voters.