BANGALORE, Sept 2: Keeping with true Congress party culture, All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Sonia Gandhi has pleased every Congressmen who matters in Karnataka. Each of them finds a place in the list of office bearers to the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) which has been functioning without office bearers for the last two years.Tuesday's announcement of a 152-member KPCC surpasses all previous records as far as its size is concerned. It has a mind-boggling 18 vice presidents, 25 general secretaries, 28 secretaries, 31 executive committee members, 42 permanent invitees and 16 special executives. The previous record stood at a 72-member committee.Though the long awaited list has received a traditional welcome from Congress leaders, many senior leaders who figure in the list are embarrassed by its sheer size. ``Now everyone of us is an important leader, and at the same time, everyone of us is nothing,'' said a senior leader.As many as 151 members out of the PCC's full strengthof 280 figure in the executive, which means that every alternate PCC member is an office bearer. ``The Congress party does not have a hall big enough to accommodate all the office bearers for holding meetings. Hereafter, the party will have to engage big marriage halls,'' commented a Congress leader.Many expected the party high command to appoint a compact committee of only those Congressmen with reasonable acceptance among all sections, capable of carrying everyone with them and deliver effectively. But traditional thinking seems to have prevailed on Sonia Gandhi too. ``How can 18 vice presidents, 25 general secretaries and 28 secretaries decide on any one issue. At least Dharam Singh had the freedom to take decisions, but now decision-making will be the most difficult exercise,'' said a Congressman.A senior Congress leader, on the condition on anonymity, said that Sonia and Tariq Anwar, general secretary in-charge of Karnataka, were keen on having a compact body, but Dharam Singh wanted to accommodateall sections leading in the jumbo list. Also, there was tremendous pressure from various Congressmen to accommodate their men in the list, he said.Discontent was already simmering among the partymen over the continuance of Dharam Singh. A change in leadership at this stage would have deepened the crisis in the party as there were at least six serious and deserving contenders for the post. ``To keep the flock together, the high command chose to continue Dharam Singh and also please his baiters by giving them and their men representation in the decision-making body,'' they said.Dharam Singh, however, disagreed that the list was a long one. Many are only special and permanent invitees, he said. ``With elections to the Assembly and Panchayats fast approaching, the party needs to strengthen its presence all over the State. We have to have one strong leader in each district,'' he said.When contacted, many general secretaries said that naming 25 partymen to a single post would be counterproductive as onewould shift the blame on the other. ``We do not know about our responsibilities yet. We will wait till we are told specifically about our duties,'' reacted a young Congressman who has been appointed for the first time.A section of Congressmen reacted differently. The announcement of the jumbo list is to please all sections, but definitely there is something more than what meets the eye. ``A core group or a coterie is likely to emerge, which will control the party affairs in Karnataka. The KPCC may function for name sake but the actual affairs would be run by the group,'' they feel.
