I won’t be a Deshmukh puppet: new MPCC chief

He said that the aim was not to deliberately raise contentious issues, “but if we find that there is something wrong, we’ll pull up the government”. He added that the Congress had strong roots among the masses and it was the duty of the party to ensure the welfare of the common man. “If there is a mistake, the party will intervene and take action. I have already sent a signal to some ministers who don’t listen to party workers, wait and see the results,” he said. “Some appointments like Special Executive Officers (SEOs) and the ones to state-run corporations have been pending for a long time. I have asked for detailed information and will soon take up the issue with the Chief Minister.”

Thakre embellished his assertion of independence by referring to dissident Revenue Minister Narayan Rane as a senior leader whose presence would benefit the party in the polls. “My policy is to take everyone with me and steer the party to victory,” he said, pointing out that he made repeated personal requests to Rane to ensure his presence at the August 21 function where he took over as MPCC chief. “I won’t isolate anyone,” Thakre said.

He said that he would strengthen the party as well as work in tandem with the government by having regular meetings of the coordination committee which, incidentally, has met only thrice in the last four years.

Thakre, who hails from Vidarbha, blamed officials for lapses in the implementation of the Prime Minister’s and the state government’s package for distressed farmers. “The irregularities are in schemes involving individual farmers,” he said. “And it is because officials committed mistakes. I have written to the Chief Minister two days ago to set up a committee of local elected representatives to monitor the implementation of the packages.”

Admitting that there is groupism in the party, he said that he would unite the groups to ensure that the party wins elections and works for the people. “Some senior people in the party at times get hurt when a newcomer is given importance but it should be remembered that while the party needs the knowledge and experience of seniors, it also has to make use of newcomers by giving them responsibilities.” He said that three-day workshops had been planned across the state to reach out to party workers and to get them to sink their differences .

Thakre claimed that after the timebound changes being executed by him, the Congress would be fully prepared to face any election by November 1. He said that while all district units would not be reconstituted, changes would be made wherever necessary. Referring to rivals in the poll fray, he said, “The NCP is not our enemy. It is a like-minded party, but it has the right to expand and find space in politics like us. Our main rival is the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance.” He said that with the delimitation of constituencies, seat-sharing with the NCP would be based on practical grounds to help trounce the saffron combine.