THE tension bubbling within the Congress in Maharashtra ever since the revolt of the Tambe family in the recent MLC polls has spilled into the open. Senior Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat referred to the issue at a public event Sunday, and his aides said he had complained to the party high command about alleged “humiliation” by Maharashtra unit chief Nana Patole. While there have been grumblings about the style of functioning of Patole, who joined the Congress from the BJP in January 2018, it is the first time someone has put this out in public. Congress leaders say the murmurs might grow "as Patole is seen as working in isolation rather than carrying the party together", with seniors too miffed over being “sidelined”. Thorat's outburst came at a function organised for his birthday in Sangamner on Sunday evening. Referring to the Nashik graduates' Legislative Council seat elections, he said: "I am pained by the politics that happened over the seat. I have conveyed my feelings to the party high command.” Thorat added: "They alleged that I was heading to the BJP. I am a Congressman and will always remain so. We will take appropriate decision about it at the party level.” The function was attended by the winner from the seat and Thorat's nephew, Satyajeet Tambe, as well as Tambe's father Sudhir Tambe and the local Congress MLA. The Congress had originally nominated Tambe Sr, the sitting MLC from the seat. However, at the last minute, Satyajeet filed his nomination as an Independent, while Tambe Sr stayed away despite being given the Congress ticket. Soon after he won, Satyajeet claimed that the family was told to take a decision on who should contest, but was given the wrong form for filing the nomination. While Satyajeet did not name Patole, his remarks were seen as directed at the state Congress chief. He added: "When the wrong form was sent to me, I called Patole. His phone was switched off. I still filed the nomination paper as a Congress candidate but the party did not declare its support to me.” Claiming that this was what made him file nomination as an Independent, Satyajeet alleged a conspiracy against the family and attempts to defame uncle Thorat. So far, Thorat, undergoing treatment after injuring his shoulder, had avoided any remarks on the MLC controversy. Asked whether Thorat had written to the high command, state Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe said he was not aware of any such letter. Party sources said that Patole also faced push-back over the two names he suggested for the Nagpur seat in the MLC polls. A group of leaders from Vidarbha united to ensure that Sudhakar Adbale got the Congress candidate; and he won in a major upset for the BJP. Sources say the resistance by the Congress leaders was on account of what had happened in December 2021, when Patole had prevailed to ensure a ticket for fellow BJP-turned-Congress leader Chhotu Bhoyar from Nagpur seat MLC election, against state BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule. At the last minute, the Congress had shifted its support to Independent Mangesh Deshmukh, with Bawankule eventually winning by a huge margin. A Congress leader said many others share Thorat's views regarding Patole, and accused the state chief of taking “unilateral decisions”, without consulting colleagues who have spent decades in the party. The leader also accused Patole of fomenting tension in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance. "Instead of cementing ties with the NCP and Uddhav Shiv Sena, he every day makes statements against the alliance partners.” Among those said to be unhappy about Patole's functioning are ex-Union minister Prithviraj Chavan and former chief minister Ashok Chavan. While Ashok Chavan told a TV channel he did not want to make any comment “about the state leadership”, Prithviraj Chavan said Patole had “his own style of functioning”. Cryptically, he added to The Indian Express: “I myself have had no problem with him. He does call me whenever he feels like it." Prithviraj Chavan went on to draw a comparison with the time Mallikarjun Kharge, the current Congress national president, was in-charge of the party in Maharashtra. “There was a committee of seniors then. It had former CMs, former ministers, the sitting state unit president and former presidents. We used to meet every fortnight or month, discuss party issues and give our advice. There is a pressing need for such a committee again to avoid issues like those that arose during the Tambe case," he said. During Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra, Patole had come under criticism for reportedly making “negligible” effort, leaving senior party leaders to shoulder the bulk of the organisational details. Earlier, in February 2021, Patole had left the party stunned by his abrupt resignation as Speaker. For a long time after that, the Deputy Speaker continued to run the House proceedings, with no Speaker elected. This ended up posing a problem last year, when the MVA was trying to save its government after the split in the Shiv Sena.
