Express News Service
LUCKNOW: After the conclusion of the Congress’s three-day Chintan Shivir organised in Udaipur, the city of lakes, in Rajasthan, discontent is simmering among senior leaders in Uttar Pradesh as they were not invited to the camp which was attended by all the bigwigs of the grand old party.
Party insiders have a common refrain that scores of senior leaders were ignored and newly inducted faces, who failed to make a mark in the recently concluded UP assembly polls, were invited to the Chintan Shivir.
If sources in the state unit of the party are to be believed, the consequences of the brewing discontent among state leaders would soon be out in the open. In the Chintan Shivir, around 25 leaders from UP including Acharya Pramod Krishnam, PL Punia, Aradhana Mishra and Pramod Tiwari were invited.
Party sources claimed that as per the guidelines of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the leader of the Congress Legislature Party in the assembly, CWC members, national general secretary and secretary should be called to any such congregation of the party. However, some of the senior leaders were invited to the camp as special invitees.
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“Questions are being raised over the invitations to those special invitees. The party has two MLAs in UP. One of the two — Virendra Chadhury from Pharenda in Maharajganj — was not invited to the Chintan Shivir,” said a UP Congress leaderseeking anonymity. He added that even senior leaders like Sriprakash Jaiswal and former UPCC chief Nirmal Khatri were not important enough for the party high command to be invited to the shivir.
On the contrary, some new entrants into the party including the likes of Anil Yadav and Shahnawaz Alam, who had joined the Congress recently from Rihaee Manch, were invited to the camp. Former vice president of Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) Vishwa Vijay Singh was invited to the party camp.
Party leaders feel that the policy of ‘pick and choose’ adopted by the party high command was not proper. “Anil Yadav had fought the assembly election from Azamgarh and could get just 2200 votes. After such a disappointing performance, he was called to the Shivir while Virendra Chaudhury, even after winning from Pharenda, was conveniently ignored,” said another party leader.
Notably, the Congress tally of seven MLAs in 2017 fell to two in the recently concluded UP assembly elections. The party, under the leadership of AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who was in charge of the state, had fielded candidates in all 403 seats but could manage to win just two — Rampur Khas and Pharenda — securing just 2.33 per cent votes.
Meanwhile, after the Chintan Shivir, the Congress high command is contemplating sweeping changes in the state unit of the party aiming for its revival in UP.
Besides, the appointment of state unit chief and vice presidents, the party is planning to give a younger look to its organizational structure by appointing leaders up to 50 years of age in the majority of posts.
Moreover, an election management committee is also proposed for Uttar Pradesh. This committee would supervise the management of polls while keeping an eye on issues related to the people. To gauge the mood of the people, a public affairs committee is also on the anvil in UP. The party is looking to set up a training centre in UP for the sensitization of party cadre.
