Natwar Singh hot favourite for Cong media cell chief post

This leaves Natwar Singh and Ghulam Nabi Azad as the hot contenders for the post which is likely to go to a seasoned leader, well-versed in party affairs and the finer nuances of interacting with the media.

According to party circles, Natwar Singh is the frontrunner for the post. Singh, who has been sulking for sometime after being denied a Rajya Sabha seat earlier this year, has since made up with the present dispensation and is said to be back in the privileged inner circle of 10 Janpath. An indication of this was evident earlier this week when he was asked by 10 Janpath to address a key media briefing on Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee’s visit to the United States.

Singh, nominated to the CWC by party chief Sonia Gandhi in last year’s reshuffle of the AICC, is presently chairman of the AICC’s foreign affairs cell.

Azad, the other senior leader whose name is doing the rounds for the media department chairman’s post is no pushover either, having held senior positions in the party for a long time now. A seasoned politician, as general secretary of the crucial southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, he is close to the powers that be in the party and is known for his skills in political management.

Although, the reconstitution of the media department has nothing to do with the party’s organisational elections, Sonia may also continue with the existing set up till polls are over in October and then organise a fresh team.

The party’s media department was revamped in May this year, with several senior leaders being brought in as members. Soni and Kamal Nath are among those who are already members while former Rajya Sabha MP Subbirami Reddy is the convener. There are as many as five spokespersons, who take turns in briefing the media.

The Congress high command has attached a lot of importance to its media department in recent months due to the general feeling that it has been getting bad press in the national media as compared to the BJP.

But the department had come under a cloud following some confusion over the party’s economic and nuclear policies. It was felt that the department had been unable to make clear the party’s stand on these key issues, causing a fair bit of embarrassment. Whoever makes it to the hot seat then, will have quite a job on their hands.