Congress leadership talks to CMs, state leaders before revamp

The humiliating defeat suffered by the party in Lok Sabha polls has prompted the exercise

A decision on change of guard in Assam, Maharashtra and Haryana is expected soon with Congress leadership today holding parleys with Chief Ministers of Maharashtra and Haryana as the party prepares for a massive organisational rejig.

The humiliating defeat suffered by the party in Lok Sabha polls, where it could get only 44 seats in the 543-member Lower House, has prompted the exercise. While Assembly polls in Maharashtra and Haryana are scheduled this year end, the party is grappling with dissidence in Assam.

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had a 30-minute meeting with Congress President Sonia Gandhi. His Maharashtra counterpart Prithviraj Chavan met party veteran A K Antony and Gandhi's political secretary Ahmed Patel.

While sources close to Hooda declined the suggestions that he could be replaced, the activities on Maharastra front gained momentum today.

Two Maharashtra leaders Shivajrao Deshmukh and Shivajirao Moghe met the Congress President at her 10 Janpath residence here. Moghe later also met Antony.

Deshmukh, who is the Chairman of Maharashtra Legislative Council, is a four-time MLA and has been MLC twice. Moghe is currently the minister of Social Justice in Maharashtra Cabinet.

The talk about a change of guard in Maharashtra gained currency after Antony and Patel met NCP chief Sharad Pawar at his residence on Thursday night, where the issue was discussed threadbare.

Party sources have maintained that in case a final decision to replace Chavan is taken, party veterans A K Antony and Ghulam Nabi Azad could go to Maharashtra as observers. Antony was also the AICC in-charge of Maharashtra some time back.

Congress could win only two and it ally NCP just four of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra this time.

While NCP is said to be reportedly more amenable to senior Congress leader Sushilkumar Shinde's name as next Maharashtra Chief Minister, a Congress functionary said that it's a decision that Congress has to take and the NCP chief has not insisted on any name in the meeting.

Besides Shinde, the names of state ministers Bala Saheb Thorat and Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil are doing the rounds as successor to incumbent Prithviraj Chavan.