Maharashtra Congress reshuffle: 69 new district chiefs named ahead of 2029 polls
In Nagpur, the Congress decided to hand over the baton to Prafful Gudadhe, an arch-rival of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
Thirty-seven All India Congress Committee (AICC) observers recommended names for presidents across 72 party districts in Maharashtra. (File Photo) In one of its biggest reshuffles in decades, the Maharashtra Congress on Thursday appointed 69 organisational district presidents in a bid to revitalise the party at the grassroots level, ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha and Assembly polls.
New and young faces have been appointed in several districts as part of the party’s Sanghatan Srujan Abhiyan (SSA).
Prashant Jagtap and Babajani Durrani, who quit the NCP(SP) to join the Congress, have been named Pune city east and Parbhani rural presidents, respectively.
In Nagpur, the party has decided to hand over the baton to Prafful Gudadhe, an arch-rival of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Gudadhe has been Fadnavis’s adversary for two elections now. Known for his focus on organisational work, he has been a constant voice against the BJP in Nagpur.
Senior legislator and former minister Satej Patil will continue to head Kolhapur rural. In Vidarbha’s Chandrapur, where, despite emerging as the biggest party in municipal corporation polls, the Congress failed to secure the mayoral post due to infighting, the party has appointed Shiva Rao Polisetti. He is known to be a mediator between the warring groups within the party.
The Congress completely revamped its organisation in north Maharashtra, where it had a dismal presence. Presidents in Nandurbar, Jalgaon, and Nasik have been changed to make way for new leadership. The voices of dissent have already started rising from areas such as Gadchiroli and Panvel.
“The main change and focus is on urban areas of the state. The new presidents have been named to bring a positive organisational change in the party. With the expansion of urban areas in the state, the party wants to bring in new faces to identify with the changing social and political nature of cities,” a senior party official said.
No appointments in 3 districts
Thirty-seven All India Congress Committee (AICC) observers have recommended names for presidents across 72 party districts in Maharashtra. The observers visited various districts to consult with local leaders, current and former MLAs and MPs, local body representatives, existing district presidents, and state and national office bearers. No appointments have been made in Amaravati rural, Nagpur rural, and Malegaon city.
Under the SSA, promoted by the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, AICC observers visited districts, spent days, interacted with local party workers and outsiders, and recommended three to six names as district chiefs. Of these, one name was chosen. States such as Gujarat and Haryana have already undergone this exercise.
In Maharashtra, state party president Harshvardhan Sapkal had expanded the scope of the SSA, which began on March 26. Termed the “Sapkal pattern”, it not only recommended names for district and tehsil chiefs, but made almost 7,000 other appointments in party’s frontal cells, including youth, student, women, minority, OBC, SC, ST and social media.
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