Nana Patole appointed Maharashtra Congress chief
Patole, 56, resigned as assembly speaker on Thursday evening. AICC announced the new organisational body for Maharashtra on Friday
All India Congress Committee (AICC) has appointed former assembly speaker Nana Patole as its Maharashtra unit chief. It has also appointed six working presidents—former ministers Shivajirao Moghe, Chandrakant Handore, Arif Naseem Khan, Basavraj Patil and MLAs Praniti Sushilkumar Shinde and Kunal Rohidas Patil.
Patole, 56, resigned as assembly speaker on Thursday evening. AICC announced the new organisational body for Maharashtra on Friday. It has also appointed 10 new vice-presidents including Ramesh Bagwe, Hussain Dalwai, Shirish Chaudhari and Mohan Joshi among others. The party has also replaced its parliamentary board under the new state president. The 37-member board comprises three former chief ministers, Ashok Chavan, Sushilkumar Shinde, Prithviraj Chavan, former Cabinet ministers Shivraj Patil Chakurkar, Milind Deora, Mukul Wasnik, Vilas Muttemwar, and all incumbent state Cabinet ministers among others.
Also Read | Who is Nana Patole and why is he expected to lead Congress in Maharashtra?
The party’s new six working presidents replace the existing five, most of whom have been accommodated in the state Cabinet. Keeping an eye on the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation elections, the party has appointed two working presidents from Mumbai. Arif Naseem Khan is the party’s Muslim face, while Handore is a prominent Dalit leader. Former social justice minister Shivajirao Moghe is a tribal leader from Vidarbha, while Basavraj Patil, a Lingayat, has been appointed to represent Marathwada. Praniti Shinde, daughter of Sushilkumar Shinde and Kunal Patil, son of former minister Rohidas Patil represent western and north Maharashtra.
Patole, a four-time legislator from Bhandara, is seen as an aggressive leader from the Vidarbha region, an erstwhile Congress stronghold where the party now faces strong competition from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Political analyst Pratap Asbe said Patole’s organisational skills are yet to be proved, but he enjoys mass support in parts of Vidarbha. “Not being part of the state Cabinet, unlike previous chief Balasaheb Thorat, will help him in asserting the party position on political issues.”
According to a Congress leader, the new appointments have struck a regional, caste balance and have given due representation to new faces and the old guard alike. “Leaders like Moghe, Arif Naseem Khan, Basavraj Patil have been elevated after they lost the elections in 2019. The party leadership expects the new team to regain its old glory in the state, especially in rural Maharashtra,” he said.
