Harish Rawat to lead polls, gets aide as state unit chief
Pritam Singh made leader of Oppn; experts say Cong rejig strengthens Rawat’s hold over party
DEHRADUN: With months left for assembly polls in Uttarakhand, the Congress central leadership appointed former chief minister Harish Rawat as the president of the election campaign committee and reshuffled the state unit, appointing Ganesh Godiyal, considered close to Rawat, as the party’s new state president, replacing Pritam Singh who was made of the leader of opposition.
Like in Punjab, four working presidents were appointed in Uttarakhand for the first time. They are Jeet Ram, Bhuwan Kapri, Tilak Raj Behad and Ranjit Rawat. The new appointments were informed by party national general secretary KC Venugopal in a statement released on Thursday night, which ended a month-long crisis in Uttarakhand Congress over the appointment of the new leader of opposition after the death of senior party leader Indira Hridayesh.
Experts say the hold of Harish Rawat over the party has got stronger after the rejig, as many of the appointees are considered close to him. Party sources said Rawat was rooting for Godiyal as the state unit president during the month-long standoff.
The appointment of Rawat, who is also the Punjab unit in-charge and credited with solving the party’s crisis there, as the election campaign committee president signals that he would be the party’s CM face for 2022 state assembly polls, experts say.
Rajya Sabha member Pradeep Tamta was appointed as vice president of the campaign committee and former minister Dinesh Agrawal as the convenor.
Party leader Aryendra Sharma was appointed as the state unit’s new treasurer. The central leadership also approved the state core committee, coordination committee, manifesto committee, election management committee and outreach committee ahead of the assembly polls. Political experts say Harish Rawat has the imprint on the new team as most of the appointees are close to him.
“It has clearly made him stronger in the state Congress ahead of 2022 elections as apart from getting the important position of the election campaign committee president, his close aide Godiyal has been appointed as the state unit’s new president,” said MM Semwal, political analyst and professor of political science in Garhwal Central University, Srinagar. “Also, vice president of campaign committee Pradeep Tamta is close to him. The new team has tilted the power balance in the party towards Rawat, sidelining former party president Pritam Singh with whom his differences are no open secret,” Semwal said. “Rawat would also be the party’s CM face in upcoming elections.”
Another political analyst, SMA Kazmi, said that after Hridayesh’s death, Rawat practically had no opposition in the party state unit.
“Pritam Singh with the support of Hridayesh was opposing Rawat’s attempt to dominate the state unit. But after her death, Singh was left alone and was not in a position to oppose Rawat,” Kazmi said. “Having said that, Rawat is also the strongest face of the Congress in the state. He is also a very clever and experienced politician who would have never allowed anyone to lead the party in elections. The new team has basically given him the steering wheel.”
Congress state in-charge Devendra Yadav who along with Godiyal met party leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday denied any power shift in the state unit with the new team. “The team is a balanced one, which will work together to win the 2022 elections,” Yadav said. “We are sure that the new team under Godiyal will strengthen the ideology of the party and help it win the upcoming elections. The team has not made anyone strong or sidelined any other leader. We all are united.”
ANOTHER POLITICAL ANALYST, SMA KAZMI, SAID THAT AFTER HRIDAYESH’S DEATH, RAWAT PRACTICALLY HAD NO OPPOSITION IN THE PARTY STATE UNIT.