New Delhi: The Congress high command has revamped the Pradesh Congress Committees (PCCs) ahead of its three-day Chintan Shivir – or brainstorming session – slated to begin on May 13 in Udaipur, Rajasthan.
The restructuring was aimed at pacifying disgruntled G-23 leaders and keeping them with the party. The revamp will also help in preventing G-23 leaders from raising uncomfortable questions at the Chintan Shivir, convened to discuss means to rejuvenate the Congress.
G-23 refers to a group of leaders who have been pushing for party-level reforms within the Congress since the 2019 Lok Sabha poll debacle.
The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) has been excluded from the restructuring process citing organisational election.
The high command replaced Haryana PCC president Kumari Shelja with Uday Bhan, a Bhupinder Singh Hooda loyalist. Though Shelja has been close to the Gandhi family, the high command yielded to opposition leader Hooda's pressure. The party also realised that a miffed Hooda, one among the G-23, does not augur well for its prospects in Haryana.
The message was clear when the Congress made Pratibha, wife of the late chief minister Veerabhadra Singh, the PCC chief. The party realised that it should ride on Veerabhadra Singh's legacy to contest the year-end assembly polls.
Singh had ensured to stymie the growth of a second-rung leadership, leaving the Congress to face a leadership deficit in Himachal. Sonia Gandhi ensured a decent post for Anand Sharma, another from the G-23, by appointing him as the chairman of the State steering committee.
The high command will restructure the Odisha PCC in the coming days.
Meanwhile, sources said Rajasthan Chief Minister and a Gandhi loyalist Ashok Gehlot is likely to table a resolution at the Shivir, demanding Rahul Gandhi to take up the post of AICC president. The official faction believes that the G-23 may not publicly oppose the resolution.
Though discussions with poll strategist Prashant Kishor did not yield the desired result, the Congress is unlikely to reject his recommendations to rejuvenate the grand old party. The Shivir will also discuss organisational-level changes, sources said.
Meanwhile, senior leader Kamal Nath has stepped down as the leader of the opposition in Madhya Pradesh, indicating that he might shift to the national leadership. AICC general secretary (organisational matters) K C Venugopal said Sonia Gandhi had accepted Kamal Nath's resignation. The official version is that Kamal Nath tendered his resignation in conformity to the party policy of one person, one post.
