Faced with a challenge to revive its cadre ahead of crucial 2017 Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, the Congress today announced a jumbo team of its office-bearers for Mumbai unit comprising former state ministers and legislators.
According to the list approved by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the party has named 3 senior vice presidents, 16 vice presidents, 22 general secretaries, 5 spokespersons, 32 secretaries, 23 executive committee members and 19 permanent invitees.
Former state minister and sitting legislator from Dharavi constituency, Varsha Gaikwad, and former MLAs Madhu Chavan and Baba Siddiqui have been appointed as senior vice presidents.
Amongst the vice presidents named include former MLC Charan Singh Sapra and ex-corporator Upendra Doshi.
Legislators Amin Patel, Aslam Shaikh and BMC corporators Mohsin Haider and Pravin Chheda were appointed as general secretaries of the unit.
MLC Bhai Jagtap, party's Bandra corporator Asif Zakaria and former councillor Ravi Raja have been named as spokespersons, apart from Gajendra Lashkari and Arun Sawant.
The list of special invitees include the names of former Mumbai Region Congress Committee presidents Kripashankar Singh and Janardan Chandurkar and BMC opposition leader Devendra Amberkar.
The party had, in the wake of its dismal performance during 2014 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra assembly polls, in March this year had appointed former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and former MP Sanjay Nirupam as chiefs of its Maharashtra and Mumbai units respectively.
The Congress has been out of power in the BMC, Asia's richest civic body, for at least 18 years with the Shiv Sena-BJP combine leading the governing agency.
