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Journalism of Courage
As the Congress begins a hunt for a Muslim face in place of PM Sayeed in the Cabinet, the name of UP Congress president Salman Khursheed has surfaced for the third Rajya Sabha seat from Delhi. The seat, held by Sayeed, would have been due for a fresh election in the coming round even in normal course.
Sources in the Congress disclosed that three other prominent leaders have emerged as the key contenders for the Muslim slot in the Cabinet. They are former Maharashtra chief minister and Lok Sabha member AR Antulay, former Union minister and Rajya Sabha member from Chhattisgarh Mohsina Kidwai and former central minister and Rajya Sabha member from Jammu and Kashmir Saif-ud-Din Soz.
Kidwai, a veteran leader rooted in UP, is a member of the CWC. She was reportedly offered a gubernatorial assignment after the party came to power, but she opted for active politics. Subsequently, she was accommodated in the Rajya Sabha from Chhattisgarh, the state she was in charge of. Soz is a prominent leader from the Kashmir Valley, but is a relative new-comer to Congress. Antulay is past his prime.
Khursheed, who quit as party general secretary to take charge of UP state presidency, has had problems with in-charge general secretary Satyavrat Chaturvedi.
